Attitudes towards abortion in the DRC suggest there are ways to overcome stigma

March 15, 2021
Sara E Casey

In the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), restrictive abortion laws, limited medical resources, and high costs – all heightened by two decades of conflict – have led to barriers in access to safe abortion.

Despite the legal restrictions, abortion is common in the DRC although national data are lacking. One study in Kinshasa estimated that 61% of pregnancies in 2016 were unintended, and there was a rate of 56 abortions per 1,000 women between the ages of 15 and 49. An estimated 88% of abortions in Middle Africa are unsafe.

Continued: https://theconversation.com/attitudes-towards-abortion-in-the-drc-suggest-there-are-ways-to-overcome-stigma-156392

15.03.2021

restrictive abortion laws

World Health Organisation

Africa

Democratic Republic of Congo

Health

Human Rights

Unsafe Abortion

Si Jeunesse Savait promotes sexual and reproductive health and rights in DRC

DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO – Si Jeunesse Savait promotes sexual and reproductive health and rights in DRC

by International Campaign for Women's Right to Safe Abortion
Nov 12, 2019

Gynaecologist Denis Mukwege has highlighted the suffering of women victims of rape in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). But the cruelty of the rapes committed in the context of war must not allow us to forget the daily need for access to reproductive rights.

In Kinshasa, Si Jeunesse Savait (If Youth Knew,SJS) plays an important role in providing young women with reproductive health information and support, in a country where the most basic rights are often not respected. SJS, a partner of the Belgian NGO Le Monde for Women, also offers support to young victims of violence because of their sexual orientation.

Continued: http://www.safeabortionwomensright.org/drc-si-jeunesse-savait-promotes-sexual-reproductive-health-rights/

12.11.2019

sexual and reproductive health and rights

Si Jeunesse Savait

Africa

Democratic Republic of Congo

Human Rights

Expanding Access to Safe Abortion in the Democratic Republic of Congo

Expanding Access to Safe Abortion in the Democratic Republic of Congo
Strengthening Evidence-Based Policy to Expand Access to Safe Abortion (SAFE ENGAGE)

Mar 28, 2019

In the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), access to safe abortion has historically been limited. Political chaos, a weak health sector, low use of contraception, and restrictive laws—that until recently made it illegal in nearly all cases—have contributed to high rates of abortion across the country. Many of these are unsafe, which contributes to the DRC’s very high maternal mortality rate. However, in March 2018 the Congolese government published the text of the Maputo Protocol in the country’s national legal journal following a concerted advocacy effort by a coalition of women’s rights groups, researchers, and nongovernmental organizations, known as Coalition de Grossesses Non Désirées. Due to the nature of the country’s legal system, this action effectively expanded the categories under which abortion is now legal in DRC.

Continued: https://www.prb.org/program/expanding-access-to-safe-abortion-in-the-democratic-republic-of-congo/

28.03.2019

Featured

News

Coalition de Grossesses Non Désirées

Maputo Protocol

maternal mortality

Population Reference Bureau

Safe Engage project

Africa

Democratic Republic of Congo

Unsafe abortion: A forgotten emergency

Unsafe abortion: A forgotten emergency

Mar 7, 2019

Unsafe abortion remains one of the five leading causes of maternal mortality, despite the fact that it is almost always preventable.

More than 22,000 women and girls die each year after having an unsafe abortion, according to a comprehensive report published by the Guttmacher Institute in 2018.

Since 1990 the world has made significant progress to reduce the other main causes of maternal deaths—severe bleeding, severe infection, blood pressure disorders, and obstructed labor—yet there has been little improvement to diminish the dangers of unsafe abortion.

Continued: https://www.doctorswithoutborders.org/what-we-do/news-stories/story/unsafe-abortion-forgotten-emergency

Africa: Unsafe Abortion – Neglected Emergency

Africa: Unsafe Abortion - Neglected Emergency

Mar 4, 2019

Unsafe abortion still accounts for at least one in 12 maternal deaths globally. And, compared to reductions in all the other direct causes of maternal deaths since 1990 - severe bleeding, severe infection, blood pressure disorders and obstructed labour - there has been little improvement in the negative impact of unsafe abortion.

Unsafe abortion is a procedure for terminating an unwanted pregnancy either by persons lacking the necessary skills or in an environment lacking minimal medical standards or both, as defined by the World Health Organization. Abortion, whether safe or unsafe, is a common event worldwide: approximately one in four pregnancies ended in an induced abortion during the period 2010-2014.

Continued: https://allafrica.com/stories/201903040646.html

“I’ve seen with my own eyes, safe abortion saves lives”

"I’ve seen with my own eyes, safe abortion saves lives"

27 September 2018

Dr Manisha Kumar is a family medicine doctor and the coordinator of the Task Force for Safe Abortion Care, a project that aims to increase access to contraceptive and safe abortion care services offered by Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) projects.

Before I started working at MSF field projects, I saw abortion as more of a political issue, or as an aspect of women’s rights. But now that I’ve seen women and girls in need of safe abortion, day after day, with my own eyes, I’ve come to understand abortion as a medical necessity, something that has a very real impact on people’s lives.

Continued: https://www.msf.org/ive-seen-my-own-eyes-safe-abortion-saves-lives

Legal access to abortion expands in Democratic Republic of Congo

Legal access to abortion expands in Democratic Republic of Congo

Thursday, July 26, 2018

In an historic shift toward greater fulfillment of women’s sexual and reproductive rights in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), women can now legally access abortion under a broader range of conditions—including in cases of sexual assault, rape or incest, and when a continued pregnancy would endanger the mental and physical health of the woman or the life of the woman or the fetus.

“Months of advocacy by Ipas and our strategic partners in the DRC helped achieve this huge step forward for women’s rights,” says Patrick Djemo, Country Representative of Ipas DRC.

Continued: http://www.ipas.org/en/News/2018/July/Legal-access-to-abortion-expands-in-Democratic-Republic-of-Congo.aspx

Congo: Clandestine Abortion Is Common in Kinshasa, and Procedures Are Often Unsafe

Clandestine Abortion Is Common in Kinshasa, and Procedures Are Often Unsafe

November 7, 2017
News Release

Likely a Major Contributor to the Democratic Republic of Congo’s High Number of Maternal Deaths

An estimated 146,700 abortions were performed in 2016 in Kinshasa, the capital of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), according to a new study conducted by researchers at the University of Kinshasa and the Guttmacher Institute. This translates to an abortion rate of 56 per 1,000 women of reproductive age, suggesting that abortion is very common in Kinshasa.

Continued at source: https://www.guttmacher.org/news-release/2017/clandestine-abortion-common-kinshasa-and-procedures-are-often-unsafe

New Study Reveals 214 Million Women Have an Unmet Need for Modern Contraception

New Study Reveals 214 Million Women Have an Unmet Need for Modern Contraception

DKT International highlights World Contraception Day as increased education and access to reproductive health services remains crucial

Sep 25, 2017

WASHINGTON, Sept. 25, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- New data released by The Guttmacher Institute shows that of the 885 million women living in developing countries hoping to avoid pregnancy, 214 million of those are not using contraception. DKT International, one of the largest providers of contraceptives and family planning services in the developing world, stresses the importance of World Contraception Day (September 26), held annually to raise awareness and improved access of contraceptives for women worldwide.

Continued at source: http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/new-study-reveals-214-million-women-have-an-unmet-need-for-modern-contraception-300525053.html

25.09.2017

manual vacuum aspiration

unintended pregnancy

Africa

Democratic Republic of Congo

Global

Mozambique

Contraception

Congo: What It’s Like to Risk Death and Jail Time to Get an Illegal Abortion

What It's Like to Risk Death and Jail Time to Get an Illegal Abortion

Laura Kasinof
Aug 28 2017

Abortion is banned almost without exception in the Democratic Republic of Congo, but countless women still terminate their pregnancies illegally and dangerously. Fatima was one of them.

Fatima* lives with her two children in a mud brick home on the outskirts of Lubumbashi, a city in the far south of the Democratic Republic of Congo, where the earth is colored red and mining industries rule the economy. Fatima, 31, used to have a husband, too, but he disappeared last year after she learned that she was pregnant with their third child. Birth control of any variety is not regularly used in the DRC.

Continued at source: Broadly: https://broadly.vice.com/en_us/article/evvq8k/what-its-like-to-risk-death-and-jail-time-to-get-an-illegal-abortion