Funding cuts leave Liberian girls without contraception

Donor funding gaps are limiting contraceptive access for Liberian women and girls, raising fears of unsafe abortions

By: Tina S. Mehnpaine
Aug 10, 2026

Sixteen-year-old Beatrice had travelled three hours to the Rural Women and Girls’ Rights Foundation (RWGRF) in Liberia for her free Depo-Provera injection. But when she arrived, she was told the contraceptive was out of stock.

She was referred to the nearby Palala clinic, but it had run out too. “I am confused,” said Beatrice, an 11th-grade student who dreams of becoming a medical doctor.

Beatrice began having the three-monthly contraceptive injection after giving birth to her first son at 15, hoping to avoid another unintended pregnancy and stay in school. Now, without access to the contraceptive, she fears she may have to buy it from private pharmacies, where the cost is out of reach for many girls in her community.

Continued: https://www.scidev.net/global/features/funding-cuts-leave-liberian-girls-without-contraception/

Kenya – Shelves Go Dry, Services Collapse, Anti-rights Forces Surge And Deepen The Crises

Monday, 10 August 2026

Two health and gender rights leaders delivered a stark assessment of what happens when major external funding disappears overnight and organised opposition fills the vacuum. The sudden withdrawal of US government's funding support has not merely reduced services - it has fractured health systems, emptied pharmacy shelves, driven up unplanned pregnancies and unsafe abortions, and enabled anti-rights groups.

"Shelves go dry": The immediate collapse of care
Nelly Munyasia, Executive Director of the Reproductive Health Network Kenya (RHNK), did not soften her language. “We saw shelves go dry,” she said. When the US Agency for International Development (USAID) stop-work order took effect in January 2025, a system that had long operated in silos simply stopped functioning. HIV treatment, lifesaving antiretroviral refills, routine check-ups, counselling and testing outreaches, and community-based services for women, girls and key populations came to a standstill.

Continued: https://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/WO2608/S00053/shelves-go-dry-services-collapse-anti-rights-forces-surge-and-deepen-the-crises.htm

Why Are Young Ghanaian Women Still Dying from Unsafe Abortions?

by Felix Seth Kluvia, MD
10 Aug 2026

She was very young. Barely five weeks pregnant.

Very much afraid of what the immediate future held, she unfortunately decided not to seek medical help. Instead, she attempted to terminate her pregnancy at home by ingesting dozens of paracetamol tablets. She was eventually brought to the hospital critically ill. Sent to the ICU even. Despite every effort by the healthcare team, she developed severe complications and sadly lost her life.

Continued: https://www.modernghana.com/news/1517713/why-are-young-ghanaian-women-still-dying-from-unsa.amp

10.08.2026

Commentary

abortion stigma

Comprehensive Abortion Care guidelines

Ghana Criminal Offences Act

Nigeria – Ogun Assembly reviews safe termination bill to reduce preventable maternal deaths

By : Segun Ayinde
5 August 2026

Ogun State House of Assembly has begun reviewing the proposed Safe Termination of Pregnancy Bill following it’s public hearing, as legislators and maternal health advocates emphasize the importance of enacting a law that will help to curb preventable maternal deaths and strengthen access to reproductive healthcare across the state.

The review meeting, organised in collaboration with the Women Advocates Research and Documentation Centre (WARDC), Gender Development Initiative (GENDI), Centre for Community Development Health and Family Enhancement Initiatives, Centre for Reproductive Rights, IPAS Nigeria Health Foundation and Amplify Change, brought together lawmakers, health professionals, civil society organisations and other stakeholders.

Continued: https://guardian.ng/news/ogun-assembly-reviews-safe-termination-bill-to-reduce-preventable-maternal-deaths/

How Kenya’s Court of Appeal Allowed the Indiscriminate Arrest of Women and Healthcare Providers for Abortion

By Marion Joy, LL.B- Kabarak University, PGDL- Kenya School of Law, Advocate of the High Court of Kenya
July 30, 2026

In April 2026, Kenya’s Court of Appeal handed down its decision in Attorney General v PAK. It overturned a High Court decision that had shielded a high school student, PAK, and her medical officer from criminal proceedings for allegedly procuring an abortion and allowed those proceedings to resume. This piece contends that the appeal decision breached established judicial principles by introducing and focusing on an issue that neither party had raised at the expense of its Constitutional duty to advance human rights. The Court also failed to engage with the harrowing facts of the case or consider how its reasoning could jeopardize human rights protections going forward.

Continued: https://www.iconnectblog.com/how-kenyas-court-of-appeal-allowed-the-indiscriminate-arrest-of-women-and-healthcare-providers-for-abortion/

30.07.2026

U.S. students gain global perspective on reproductive justice in South Africa

Course was one of 14 faculty-led education abroad programs offered by the College of the Liberal Arts this summer

July 27, 2026
by Divya Jyoti

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Eight Penn State undergraduates gained firsthand experience in nonprofit and activist work in Cape Town, South Africa, this summer as part of the three-week faculty-led program WMNST 399: The Quest for Reproductive Justice in South Africa.

The course — one of 14 faculty-led education abroad programs offered in the College of the Liberal Arts this summer — was designed and led by Susanne M. Klausen, Brill Professor of Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies (WGSS) and of African studies in the College of the Liberal Arts, alongside co-leader Camille Sluzis, sexual assault and relationship violence coordinator at Penn State’s Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS).

Continued: https://www.psu.edu/news/liberal-arts/story/students-gain-global-perspective-reproductive-justice-south-africa

Nigeria – How MSI’s Family Planning Model Is Saving Lives, Lifting Women Out of Poverty

By Usman Bello
Sun, 26 Jul 2026

Ebonyi State has long ranked among Nigeria’s highest in maternal mortality and teenage pregnancy. But that reality is gradually shifting. A targeted family planning intervention by MSI Nigeria, implemented in partnership with the Ebonyi State Government through the State Primary Healthcare Development Agency, is beginning to rewrite the story across rural communities.

Daily Trust, which joined a Solutions Journalism field trip to Enugu and Ebonyi States organised by MSI Nigeria and Nigeria Health Watch, reports on how the programme is improving women’s health, enhancing earnings, stabilising families, and reducing preventable deaths.

Continued: https://dailytrust.com/how-msis-family-planning-model-is-saving-lives-lifting-women-out-of-poverty/

UNSAFE ABORTION: Àjose Nigeria urges compassion over stigma

July 26, 2026

Àjose Nigeria has called for more compassionate, evidence-based conversations around abortion and maternal health, urging religious leaders and churches across the country to support women facing life-threatening pregnancies without equating access to healthcare with support for abortion.

The organisation said ensuring that women receive accurate medical information and access to lawful healthcare does not amount to abandoning Christian convictions, adding that reducing preventable maternal deaths is consistent with preserving life.

Continued: https://www.vanguardngr.com/2026/07/unsafe-abortion-ajose-nigeria-urges-compassion-over-stigma/

26.07.2026

Abortion in Africa: diverging paths of DR Congo and Nigeria under the Maputo Protocol

BMJ Essay, Open access
23 July 2026
Amos M Makelele, Baraka Marthe Kalyoko, Agness Shimilimo, Million Teklay Solomon, Simon Binezero Mambo, Iacane Bampoque, Gbolahan O Obajimi

Abortion policies in DRC and Nigeria: public health impacts
The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Nigeria, two of Africa’s largest and most populous nations, present unique yet interconnected narratives on abortion law and women’s reproductive rights. Both countries grapple with alarmingly high maternal mortality rates, a significant proportion of which is driven by complications from unsafe abortions.1 These challenges, rooted in restrictive legal frameworks, inadequate healthcare infrastructure and sociocultural barriers, highlight the critical need for reform in reproductive health policies and practices.

In the DRC, maternal mortality stands at an estimated 427 deaths per 100 000 live births.2 In Nigeria, the case is even worse, with maternal mortality rates reaching 993 deaths per 100 000 live births.3 One of the significant factors for these figures is unsafe abortion, especially in rural and underserved areas where access to quality reproductive healthcare remains restricted. According to the WHO, unsafe abortion contributes to 13% of global maternal deaths,4 but in Sub-Saharan Africa, it accounts for over 30%.5 These numbers highlight the significance of unsafe abortion as a public health crisis in the region, which demands urgent attention and action.

Continued: https://gh.bmj.com/content/11/7/e020673

23.07.2026

Commentary

Belgian Penal Code of 1940

Ipas

Maputo Protocol

maternal mortality

Youth Alliance for Reproductive Health

Africa

Democratic Republic of Congo

Malawi – When childhood ends at 10

Dumase Zgambo-Mapemba, Malawi News
18 Jul 2026

The image is hard to shake off: a 10-year-old child carrying a pregnancy instead of a school bag. Yet this is no longer an isolated tragedy.

It is becoming a disturbing reality in parts of Malawi, particularly in Mchinji and Kasungu, where rising rates of teenage pregnancy are exposing deep failures in child protection, education, and sexual and reproductive health services.

According to the Malawi News Agency, Mchinji District alone recorded 4,155 pregnancies among girls ages 10–19 from January to March 2026, including some as young as 10.

Continued: https://www.pressreader.com/malawi/malawi-news/20260718/281835765467040

18.07.2026