A woman has sued her boyfriend for not proposing to her after eight years of dating, it is being reported.

Gertrude Ngoma, 26, from Zambia, told the court that she had grown tired of waiting for 28-year-old Herbert Salaliki to propose - particularly as he had already promised to do so.

At the time of the lawsuit, Ngoma was reportedly still living at home with her parents despite having a child with her long-term partner who lived on his own.

Related video - This man was arrested after the fireworks he used as part of his own proposal caused a huge scare at a movie theater:

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Salaliki is believed to have organized the dowry payment but had still not taken the plunge to propose to the mother of his child.

Per 7News, in Zambia, a dowry is often paid by would-be husbands to the family of their soon-to-be wife. According to the outlet, it is referred to as "lobola", which roughly translates to "appreciation fee".

This appreciation fee acts as an indicator that the husband-to-be will look after his wife.

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After years of disappointment, Ngoma became increasingly impatient and so opted for a lawsuit. She wanted to take her partner to court for not being serious about their relationship and their future together.

"He has never been serious, that is why I bought him to court because I deserve to know the way forward and our future," she said, per news.com.au.

The mother-of-one said she doubted Salaliki's loyalty to her after she reportedly discovered something that made her believe there was something going on between him and another woman.

Related video - This is the sweet moment two men propose to each other at exactly the same time:

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As part of his defense, Salaliki insisted he was not financially capable of paying for a wedding and accused his partner of eight years of not giving him enough attention.

It is believed that the judge in this case told the pair that working through differences and reconciling was the best solution. In any case, not much could be done since the pair were unmarried.

Woman sues boyfriend for not proposing to her after eight years of dating