Africa region: Reservations to the Maputo Protocol undermine protection of women’s health and reproductive rights

10 Feb 2026

The International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) has called for the withdrawal of reservations by Algeria, Cameroon, Kenya and Uganda to article 14 of the Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa (the Maputo Protocol).

The call came in a submission to the African Commission on Human and People’s Rights (ACHPR) on the 28th of January 2026 in response to the ACHPR call for inputs on a draft Advocacy Framework .

Article 14 of the Maputo Protocol, guarantees women’s right to health, including sexual and reproductive health, and obliges States to authorize medical abortion in limited circumstances.

Continued: https://www.icj.org/africa-region-reservations-to-the-maputo-protocol-undermine-protection-of-womens-health-and-reproductive-rights/

10.02.2026

Commentary

ACHPR

African Commission on Human and People’s Rights

International Commission of Jurists

Kaajal Ramjathan-Keogh

Maputo Protocol

Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa

sexual and reproductive health

Africa

Health

Human Rights

Uganda – Unsafe abortions increasingly recorded among adult women, new data shows

The Independent
February 9, 2026

Unsafe abortion is no longer predominantly a problem among teenage girls, as previously reported. New health surveillance data indicate that adult women, many of them married and in their prime reproductive years, now account for a growing proportion of abortion-related deaths in Uganda.

According to the Maternal and Perinatal Death Surveillance and Response (MPDSR) report for the Financial Year 2024/2025, abortion-related complications account for 4 per cent of all maternal deaths, translating to 189 deaths per 100,000 live births nationwide. The situation is particularly alarming in the Busoga sub-region, where abortion-related deaths stand at 7 per cent, with most cases occurring among women aged 25 years and above.

Continued; https://www.independent.co.ug/unsafe-abortions-increasingly-recorded-among-adult-women-new-data-shows/

09.02.2026

News

Aggrey Bameka

Buwenge General Hospital

Maternal and Perinatal Death Surveillance and Response

Zimbabwe – Poverty drives rise in unsafe abortions

February 8, 2026
Mashudu Mambo

Poverty has been identified as one of the leading factors behind the rise in illegal and unsafe abortions in many areas across the country where reports indicate that some families are extorting money from alleged perpetrators to conceal rape cases.

According to reports, several sexual abuse cases, especially those involving juveniles are being settled privately, particularly when the alleged perpetrators are from better-off families.

Continued: https://www.heraldonline.co.zw/poverty-drives-rise-in-unsafe-abortions/

08.02.2026

Nigeria – Interfaith Leaders Back Safe, Legal Maternal Care In Oyo, Ogun

February 7, 2026

Leaders of Islamic, Christian and traditional faith communities in Oyo and Ogun states have jointly declared unsafe abortion a “grave moral and public health crisis,” pledging to support access to lawful, safe and confidential maternal healthcare to curb preventable deaths and injuries.

In a communiqué issued under the Interfaith Action for Health Care initiative of the REACH-OUT with Health Awareness Programme, the clerics said the rising toll of maternal mortality linked to unsafe procedures demands compassionate, evidence-based responses that prioritise women’s dignity, health and survival.

Continued: https://platformtimes.com.ng/interfaith-leaders-back-safe-legal-maternal-care-in-oyo-ogun/

07.02.2026

News

Interfaith Action for Health Care initiative

maternal mortality

REACH-OUT with Health Awareness Programme

Zimbabwe – Dilemma reignites debate on rape, abortion and women rights

February 7, 2026
Muchaneta Chimuka, Features Writer

MULTI-AWARD-WINNING filmmaker, Joe Njagu’s Dilemma, explores how a couple’s dream of having a baby turns nasty after Chloe Thandeka “Busi” Ncube is gang-raped by armed robbers at their matrimonial home and impregnated, leaving her traumatised.

Cultural and religious beliefs within her family become a stumbling block for Busi to access safe abortion services at the local clinic and for her to get justice. This creates a big wound in the heart of the vulnerable woman.

Continued: https://www.heraldonline.co.zw/dilemma-reignites-debate-on-rape-abortion-and-women-rights/

07.02.2026

Termination of Pregnancy Act

Expanded global gag rule puts Kenya’s maternal and child health at risk

Monday, February 02, 2026
By Linet Owoko

Kenya risks losing decades of progress in maternal and child health due to the expanded Global Gag Rule, a US policy that restricts organisations receiving American funding from providing, referring for, or advocating for abortion services.

The Global Gag Rule, also known as the Mexico City Policy, threatens to dismantle the comprehensive reproductive health system that has driven significant improvements in maternal outcomes across the country.

Continued: https://nation.africa/kenya/health/expanded-global-gag-rule-puts-kenya-s-maternal-and-child-health-at-risk-5343070

02.02.2026

News

Global Gag Rule

maternal and child health

maternal mortality

Mexico City policy

Nelly Munyasia

Reproductive Health Network Kenya

Nigeria – Maternal mortality: Experts warn Ogun residents against patronising quacks

January 31, 2026
By Gift Oba

In a bid to reduce maternal deaths caused by unsafe abortions, experts and stakeholders in Ogun State have warned residents to seek medical care from qualified and well-trained doctors rather than quacks.

The warning was given at a one-day training for civil society organisations on basic reproductive health issues and the reduction of unsafe abortions, held on Friday in Abeokuta.

The President of the Medical Women’s Association of Nigeria (MWAN), Ogun State branch, Dr Deborah Osisanwo, explained that every life is important, especially that of mothers, and urged quacks to desist from terminating pregnancies but instead refer such cases to professional health practitioners.

Continued: https://dailypost.ng/2026/01/31/maternal-mortality-experts-warn-ogun-residents-against-patronising-quacks/

31.01.2026

News

Dapo Wahaab

Dr Deborah Osisanwo

Medical Women’s Association of Nigeria

STOP guidelines for abortion

Liberia: Former Legislator and Abortion Advocate Says Public Health Bill Is Not “Abortion on Demand,” But Live Saving Measure

By Joyclyn Wea
January 29, 2026

When a pregnancy turns dangerous, doctors do not always have time to debate words. Liberian pharmacist and former politician Joseph Somwarbi told a recent workshop in Monrovia that abortion opponents have taken advantage of the issue to score political points at the cost of thousands of Liberian women’s and children’s lives.

Somwarbi, who said he lost his seat as representative from Nimba County and his role as chairman of the House Committee on Health over his support for the bill, said the abortion provision is designed to give doctors, women, and their families the chance to save women’s lives when pregnancy is threatening to kill or injure them and the unborn child.

Continued: https://frontpageafricaonline.com/health/liberia-former-legislator-and-abortion-advocate-says-public-health-bill-is-not-abortion-on-demand-but-live-saving-measure/

29.01.2026

Liberia's Public Health Bill

Latest US Restrictions on Aid ‘Bully’ Recipients to Accept ‘Extremist Ideology’

29/01/2026
Kerry Cullinan

Global health organisations have reacted with anger to the new US foreign aid policy, which prohibits all aid recipients, bar military, from performing or promoting abortion, “gender ideology”, or “diversity, equity and inclusion” (DEI).

“Catastrophic”, “bullying”, “draconian” and “ideologically driven” – are some of their reactions to the Promoting Human Flourishing in Foreign Assistance (PHFFA) policy, announced by US Vice-President JD Vance at an anti-abortion event last Friday evening.

Continued; https://healthpolicy-watch.news/latest-us-restrictions-on-aid-bully-recipients-to-accept-extremist-ideology/

Uganda – Rising abortion-induced complication cases alarm Soroti hospital authorities

by Juliet Akello
January 29, 2026

Soroti Hospital data shows that about 80 abortion-related cases were handled in the 2025-2026 period, compared to less than 50 cases reported the previous year. Medical staff say the increase points to a growing prevalence of unsafe and induced abortions in communities served by the facility.

Continued: https://www.newvision.co.ug/category/health/rising-abortion-induced-complication-cases-al-NV_227085_022026

29.01.2026