Malawi – Masamba calls for stronger national action on women’s health rights

Dec 01, 2025
Eric Chiputula

Parliamentary Committee on Health chairperson Anthony Masamba has called on Malawi to move beyond policy dialogue and implement concrete measures to advance women’s sexual and reproductive health rights.

Speaking during a day-long engagement on Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights (SRHR) and access to safe abortion services in Salima, the Mchinji North East legislator told policymakers, civil society leaders, and health experts that ongoing discussions are crucial to improving the lives of millions of women and girls.

Continued : https://malawi24.com/2025/12/01/masamba-calls-for-stronger-national-action-on-womens-health-rights/

01.12.2025

News

Anthony Masamba

Maputo Protocol

sexual and reproductive health and rights

Safe abortion is life-saving healthcare: A call to action

3rd October 2025
Equality Now
By: Mumbi Mugo, Program Officer and Elizabeth Alukudo, Associate Program Officer

On the 2025 International Safe Abortion Day, commemorated on 28 September, we join women, girls, and human rights defenders across Africa and the globe in reaffirming a simple truth: safe abortion is life-saving healthcare.

As we reflect on progress made, and the road still ahead, we are reminded of the transformative potential of the Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa, more widely known as the Maputo Protocol. Adopted by the African Union in 2003, the Protocol remains one of the most progressive and comprehensive legal instruments for the promotion and protection of women’s rights globally, particularly in the realm of sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR).

Continued: https://equalitynow.org/news/news-and-insights/safe-abortion-is-life-saving-healthcare-a-call-to-action/

03.10.2025

Commentary

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

Article 14(2)(c)

Equality Now

International Safe Abortion Day

Maputo Protocol

maternal deaths

Mumbi Mugo

sexual and reproductive health and rights

World Abortion Day: Nigerian women’s health rights in focus

2nd October 2025
Ene Oshaba

Every year on September 28, the world commemorates International Safe Abortion Day, a day rooted in the struggle for women’s rights to health and dignity. Originally launched in 1990 by the Campaña 28 de Septiembre in Latin America and the Caribbean, the day has grown into a global movement, observed in over 60 countries. It is a reminder that the right to safe abortion is not only a matter of personal choice but also a critical issue of public health, human rights, and social justice.

For millions of women and girls, particularly in Nigeria, abortion remains a life-or-death issue. It is estimated that 45 per cent of all abortions worldwide are unsafe, with the vast majority occurring in developing countries where restrictive laws and stigma block access to safe services. According to the World Health Organisation, unsafe abortion is one of the leading causes of preventable maternal deaths globally. In Nigeria, where maternal mortality rates are among the highest in the world, unsafe abortion remains a silent epidemic.

Continued: https://punchng.com/world-abortion-day-nigerian-womens-health-rights-in-focus/

Kenya – Rights Groups urge Ruto to decriminalise safe abortion

The lobbyists also pointed to the Maputo Protocol, which explicitly recognises abortion as a right

by GEORGE OWITI, Nairobi
29 September 2025

Human rights lobby groups have called on President William Ruto’s administration to decriminalize safe abortion in Kenya, citing rising numbers of unsafe procedures and maternal deaths.

The African Civil Society Organizations, including the Centre for Reproductive Rights, SUPERB, FIDA Kenya, Women Collective Kenya, Women’s Probono Initiative, Reproductive Health Network Kenya and Health Development Initiative, issued the call during this year’s International Safe Abortion Day on Sunday.

Continued: https://www.the-star.co.ke/counties/nairobi/2025-09-29-rights-groups-urge-ruto-to-decriminalise-safe-abortion

Statement By the African Commission on Human And Peoples’ Rights on the Occasion of International Safe Abortion Day

Sep 28, 2025
Français Português

Banjul, The Gambia – On the occasion of International Safe Abortion Day, observed globally on 28 September, the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights (ACHPR) underscores the critical and urgent message of the 2025 theme: “Safe Abortion is Life-Saving Healthcare.”

Across our continent, unsafe abortion remains a devastating public health crisis and a grave violation of human rights. It is a leading cause of maternal mortality and morbidity, robbing Africa of its women and girls, and leaving families and communities shattered.

Continued: https://achpr.au.int/en/news/press-releases/2025-09-28/statement-african-commission-human-and-peoples-rights-occasion

28.09.2025

Commentary

ACHPR

African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights

International Safe Abortion Day

Janet Ramatoulie Sallah-Njie

Maputo Protocol

Safe Abortion is Life-Saving Healthcare

Africa

Health

Human Rights

Uganda – Why more married women are getting abortions

Thursday, September 25, 2025
By Olivier Mukaaya

When *Agatha got married, she had her life carefully planned. She hoped to have three children by the age of 35, with each pregnancy spaced out to protect her health, career, and family’s wellbeing. A devout Christian, she chose to practice natural family planning. “Families who space their children can meet their needs better. It promotes education and empowers women,” she says, adding, “Spacing pregnancies also keeps mothers safe and reduces health risks.”

Seven months after her last childbirth in 2021, Agatha , a social worker in Bududa District, who is married to a teacher, started using birth control pills. She avoided other family planning methods because of their side effects.

Continued: https://archive.is/https://www.monitor.co.ug/uganda/news/national/why-more-married-women-are-getting-abortions-5205672

25.09.2025

Commentary

Association of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Uganda

natural family planning

Destroyed Contraceptives: 170,000 unwanted pregnancies may occur in Nigeria, others, expert warns

Ms Oga said the action could result in thousands of unwanted pregnancies and unsafe abortions on the continent.

Ambali Abdulkabeer
September 15, 2025

A sexual and reproductive health and rights expert, Jessica Oga, has expressed concern over the consequences of President Donald Trump’s incineration of contraceptives and other birth control pills meant for Nigeria and other African countries. Ms Oga said the action could result in thousands of unwanted pregnancies and unsafe abortions on the continent.

“The loss of these contraceptives will directly affect women’s ability to prevent unintended pregnancies,” said Ms Oga in an interview on Sunday. “Estimates suggest that halting the distribution of these commodities could result in over 170,000 unintended pregnancies and tens of thousands of unsafe abortions in Africa alone.”

Continued: https://gazettengr.com/destroyed-contraceptives-170000-unwanted-pregnancies-may-occur-in-nigeria-others-expert-warns/

15.09.2025

News

Afya na Haki

burning of contraception

destruction of contraceptives

Women petition court to decriminalize abortion in cases of rape, incest, mental illness

The petition cites Uganda’s obligations under the Maputo Protocol and CEDAW, which call on states to respect women’s reproductive rights and ensure access to safe abortion in cases of sexual violence.

Thursday, August 21, 2025
By Juliet Kigongo

Two Muslim women leaders and a faith-based women’s rights organization have petitioned the Constitutional Court seeking a declaration that Uganda’s restrictive abortion laws are unconstitutional for filing to provide exceptions permitted under Islamic jurisprudence and international human rights standards.

Continued: https://www.monitor.co.ug/uganda/news/national/muslim-women-petition-court-to-decriminalize-abortion--5162344

21.08.2025

News

CEDAW

Hajira Gimbo

Islamic Women's Initiative for Justice Law and Peace

Maputo Protocol

Masjid Salama

Uganda Constitutional Court

Seeking care post-abortion agonises in Kenya, Tanzania

Restrictive abortion laws inflict deadly cost on fearful patients

by Nelly Madegwa and Rehema Mpemba
24 July 2025

In a small clinic on the outskirts of Nairobi, a young woman lies unconscious on a hospital bed, her body weakened by severe bleeding. Two days earlier, she had taken pills from an unlicensed chemist in a desperate attempt to terminate her pregnancy.

In Dar es Salaam, another woman fights for her life after consuming a dangerous herbal mixture meant to induce abortion.

Their stories are not unique. They represent thousands of women across Kenya and Tanzania who risk their lives each year due to restrictive abortion laws that push them towards unsafe procedures.

Despite both countries signing the Maputo Protocol, a treaty advocating for reproductive rights, Kenya and Tanzania continue to criminalise abortion, creating a paradox where women are denied safe healthcare even when their lives are at risk.

Continued: https://www.the-star.co.ke/news/big-read/2025-07-24-seeking-care-post-abortion-agonises-in-kenya-tanzania

Advancing Expansion Of Access To Safe Abortion In Nigeria

By Hameed Oyegbade
June 26, 2025

The current rate of unsafe abortion in Nigeria remains a source of concern to many and has necessitated the consistent call for expansion of access to safe abortion in the country.

In Nigeria, abortion is illegal while the only legal way to have an abortion in Nigeria is if having the child is going to put the mother's life in danger. In other words, abortion is illegal in Nigeria and carries a heavy jail sentence of up to 14 years imprisonment, unless it is performed to save the life of the pregnant woman.

Continued: https://www.thenigerianvoice.com/news/352923/advancing-expansion-of-access-to-safe-abortion-in-nigeria.html#google_vignette

26.06.2025