‘Nigeria’s maternal death rate falls below SDG target’

26th November 2022
By Lara Adejoro

The Society of Gynaecology and Obstetrics of Nigeria has lamented the high rate of maternal death in the country, saying Nigeria is nowhere near achieving the Sustainable Development Goal target of reducing the global maternal mortality ratio to less than 70 per 100,000 live births.

The SOGON President, Dr Habi Sadauki, said this, on Saturday, in Abuja at a press conference supported by the Partnership for Advocacy in child and family health At Scale anchored by the Development Research and Projects Centre and funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

Continued: https://punchng.com/nigerias-maternal-death-rate-falls-below-sdg-target/

26.11.2022

Maternal Perinatal and Child Death Surveillance and Response Bill

Muhammadu Buhari

Partnership for Advocacy in child and family health

Society of Gynaecology and Obstetrics of Nigeria

Sustainable Development Goals

Abortion under spotlight in conservative Morocco

Issued on: 13/11/2022
FADEL SENNA, AFP

Rabat (AFP) – The debate over abortion rights has flared in Morocco after a teenager's death following an unsafe termination, but social taboos continue to stall reforms.

"If I spoke out for abortion rights in front of my brothers, I'd be risking my life," said student Leila, 21, adding that she comes from a relatively "modern" family.

In September, a 14-year-old identified as Meriem died following an unsafe procedure in a rural village in the country's centre.

Continued: https://www.rfi.fr/en/international-news/20221113-abortion-under-spotlight-in-conservative-morocco

Ireland changed when Savita Halappanavar died – it must continue to change

On the ten year anniversary of the death of Savita Halappanavar, Lynn Enright reflects on how she galvanized a nation and how there is more to be done.

by Lynn Enright
27th Oct 2022

Whenever and wherever abortion is illegal, there are horror stories. Stories so grim and so gruesome they make you weep. A tale of a suicidal child forced to carry the foetus of the man who raped her; news reports of a young woman rooting through blood-soaked rubbish before reporting her housemate, who took illegal abortion pills alone, to police. In 2012, came a story so bleak that it changed a nation.

Savita Halappanavar was 31 in October 2012 and she was 17 weeks’ pregnant; it was to be the first baby for her and her husband, Praveen. If you’re carrying a longed-for baby, the 17-week mark is a nice stage of pregnancy. The morning sickness is usually gone and it is around then that you’ll feel the first flutters of movement, a tiny kick here and there.

Continued: https://www.image.ie/agenda/ireland-changed-when-savita-halappanavar-died-it-must-continue-to-change-606207

27.10.2022

Kenya: The New Cold War Over Access to Safe Abortion in Kenya

22 SEPTEMBER 2022
Inter Press Service

By Stephanie Musho and Ritah Anindo Obonyo

Nairobi — Fatuma is a 24 year old girl from Korogocho, an informal settlement
in Nairobi. She died in December 2021, from complications arising from an
unsafe abortion. Her friend and a few of her neighbors found her bleeding
profusely and unable to move. They rushed her to the hospital. Unfortunately,
she died before she could see the doctor.

Unfortunately, Fatuma's story is common for girls and women in Kenya. In fact,
at least 7 of them die every day from complications arising from unsafe
abortion. Worse still, is that with current trends - where 700 girls between
the ages of 10 and 19 are getting pregnant daily; the harrowing statistics on
abortions are likely to be worse. If Fatuma knew where she could access safe
abortion services, she would not have died.

Continued: https://allafrica.com/stories/202209230002.html

Moroccan Association Declares Day of Mourning for Minor Dead After Abortion

The tragic incident has triggered outrage among Moroccan activists and women’s rights groups.

Sara Zouiten
Sep. 20, 2022

Rabat - Moroccan Outlaws 490, a social change organization, has declared Tuesday, September 20 as a day of mourning in the memory of Meriem, a 14-year-old girl who recently lost her life after undergoing a clandestine and unsafe abortion.

The group said in a statement: “Time to grieve … Meriem, 14 years old, raped, died on September 6th following an unsafe abortion, due to the unjust system of law we all know and live under.”

Continued: https://www.moroccoworldnews.com/2022/09/351440/moroccan-association-declares-day-of-mourning-for-minor-dead-after-abortion

Moroccan Association Calls for Abortion Law Reform After Death of 14-year-old Girl

The incident reopened the public debate about abortion, with several Moroccan activists and women’s rights associations calling for the decriminalization of abortion in the country.

Sara Zouiten
Sep. 15, 2022

Rabat - Outrage grew in Morocco after a 14-year-old girl lost her life to unsafe abortion, with several associations and activists, including the Spring of Dignity Alliance, calling for reform in the country’s abortion law, as well as access to safe and legal abortion.

In a statement on Wednesday, the Spring of Dignity Alliance said that the teenager, who lived in the town of Midelt, 200 kilometers south of Fez, underwent a “secret abortion.” The abortion was carried out by a midwife who works at the regional hospital in Midelt and a technician from Azrou hospital, who pretended to be a nurse, the statement added.

Continued: https://www.moroccoworldnews.com/2022/09/351355/moroccan-association-calls-for-abortion-law-reform-after-death-of-14-year-old-girl

15.09.2022

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Moroccan Outlaws 490

Spring of Dignity Alliance

USA – What happens to people denied abortions?

Health impacts for pregnant people in post-Roe America

By Yemi Zewdu Yimer, Sara Zargham, Sharon Yuen, Gabriela Marmolejos & Tara Viviani
August 31, 2022

An estimated 138K women per year will be denied abortions in their home states following the overturning of Roe v. Wade. This population will have four options, and each carries the risk of adverse health outcomes and behaviors. To effectively adapt their maternal and reproductive health service offerings, stakeholders must understand the forecasted outcomes and volumes for each pathway below:

- Carry the pregnancy to term
- Travel out of state for legal abortion
- Order “extralegal” medication abortion by mail
- Attempt an unsafe abortion

Continued: https://www.advisory.com/topics/womens/2022/08/what-happens-to-people-denied-abortions

31.08.2022

Commentary

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United States

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The US abortion decision is already having global impacts

OPINION: The reversal of Roe v. Wade is a tragedy not just for the United States, but for women everywhere

By TK Sundari Ravindran, Pascale Allotey, Sofia Gruskin
08.31.2022

The past decades have brought modest improvements to women’s reproductive health around the world. Over the last 30 years, global rates of unintended pregnancies have thankfully declined by almost 20 percent, presumably in part because of better access to education and contraceptives. In 1973, the US Supreme Court, ruling in Roe v. Wade, declared an American woman’s right to an abortion to be fundamental and constitutionally protected. This landmark decision helped inspire many countries around the world to enshrine the individual right to bodily autonomy in law or expand access to abortion services — including Canada and India. Many women have been able to access safe abortions and post-abortion care.

Then the 2022 US Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade.

Continued: https://knowablemagazine.org/article/health-disease/2022/us-abortion-decision-already-having-global-impacts

Ethiopia expanded access to abortions and it saved lives

By Sara Jerving
17 August 2022

As a medical student and then obstetrician-gynecologist resident at the turn of the millennium, Ethiopian Dr. Muir Kassa’s work was bleak. Across the country, delivery and gynecology rooms were overwhelmed with cases of women that had undergone unsafe abortions.

“Lots of women died at my hands because they attempted unsafe abortions at home, by using some unimaginable ways, like inserting umbrella wires. It becomes very difficult to save her once she already has these complications,” he said.

Continued: https://www.devex.com/news/ethiopia-expanded-access-to-abortions-and-it-saved-lives-103397

Abortion rights: history offers a blueprint for how pro-choice campaigners might usefully respond

BMJ 2022; 378
doi: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.o1846
Published 26 July 2022
Agnes Arnold Forster, research fellow

In October 1971, the New York Times reported a decline in maternal death rate.1 Just 15 months earlier, the state had liberalised its abortion law. David Harris, New York’s deputy commissioner of health, speaking to the annual meeting of the American Public Health Association, attributed the decline—by more than half—to the replacement of criminal abortions with safe, legal ones. Previously, abortion had been the single leading cause of maternity related deaths, accounting for around a third. A doctor in the audience who said he was from a state “where the abortion law is still archaic,” thanked New York for its “remarkable job” and expressed his gratitude that there was a place he could send his patients and know they would receive “safe, excellent care.” Harris urged other states to follow the example set by New York and liberalise their abortion laws.

Continued: https://www.bmj.com/content/378/bmj.o1846