Malawi: NGO Hails Malawi Government for Reducing Maternal Mortality

13 March 2025
Centre for Solutions Journalism (Blantyre)

Centre for Solutions Journalism (CSJ) has described government's post-abortion care programme as 'life-saving and extremely important,' in ensuring that no single woman or girl suffers or dies due to pregnancy related-causes.

CSJ Executive Director Brian Ligomeka said while access to abortion services remain restricted, it was important to appreciate the success of Malawi's post-abortion care unit.

"While our wish is that no single woman or girl should suffer or die from the consequences of unsafe abortions through provision of abortion services, we need to appreciate some of the current interventions of the government," he said recently, on the sidelines of the training sessions.

Continued: https://allafrica.com/stories/202503140033.html

13.03.2025

News

Brian Ligomeka

Centre for Solutions Journalism

Coalition for the Prevention of Unsafe Abortion

Dr Francis Makiya

Malawi

Termination of Pregnancy Bill

unsafe abortion

World Health Organization

Malawi – MPs need to engage constituents for the enactment of Termination of Pregnancy Bill

August 7, 2024
by Duncan Mlanjira

Abortion in one way is illegal but termination of pregnancy is legal – but it goes with it some restrictive conditions, which deny women and girls liberty to abort unplanned pregnancies and they resort to still go ahead through clandestine and unsafe abortion.

This has created a huge crisis in Malawi and from surveys done, each year, over 141,000 women and girls have abortions – almost all clandestine and the figure is likely to be higher because there are no records for those who successfully carried out the process.

Continued: https://www.nyasatimes.com/mps-need-to-engage-constituents-for-the-enactment-of-termination-of-pregnancy-bill/#google_vignette

07.08.2024

News

Brian Ligomeka

Centre for Solutions Journalism

clandestine abortions

Duncan Mlanjira

Ipas Malawi

maternal mortality

Termination of Pregnancy Bill

Malawi – Legal restrictions fail to stop unsafe abortions – COPUA

May 21, 2024

Despite current legal restrictions, unsafe abortions are still widespread in Malawi as over 100,000 abortions take place every year, country-wide.

Citing the research results by the College of Medicine and Guttmacher Institute which shows that over 141,000 abortions happened in Malawi in 2015 alone, Coalition for the Prevention of Unsafe Abortion (COPUA) Vice Chairperson, Dr Amos Nyaka wants the law process to continue.

Continued: https://www.nyasatimes.com/legal-restrictions-fail-to-stop-unsafe-abortions-copua/

Malawi – Media asked to question Govt why Termination of Pregnancy Bill is not being tabled in Parliament

March 21, 2024
Watipaso Mzungu JNR

A consortium of civil society organizations (CSOs) implementing Breaking the Barriers Project has made an impassionate appeal to the media in the country to question why, up to now, government is reluctant to table the Termination of Pregnancy Bill in Parliament.

Continued: https://www.nyasatimes.com/media-asked-to-question-govt-why-termination-of-pregnancy-bill-is-not-being-tabled-in-parliament/

Malawi: Young Girls Bear the Brunt of Unsafe Abortions in Blantyre

11 MARCH 2024
Centre for Solutions Journalism (Blantyre)
By Penelope Paliani Kamanga

Blantyre — Data from Blantyre District Health Office shows that the majority of people seeking post-abortion care are young girls. Of the 2003 reported cases that were treated for post-abortion care from unsafe abortions in the last quarter of 2023, a staggering 1003 were under the age of 20, while 1000 were slightly over 20 years old.

Blantyre-based youth activist Rebecca Majamanda said the figures highlight the vulnerability of adolescent girls and young women to the risks associated with unsafe abortion practices, including severe health complications and death.

Continued: https://allafrica.com/stories/202403110028.html

Malawi: Breaking the Barriers On Access to Safe Abortion to Reduce Maternal Mortality

28 SEPTEMBER 2023
Centre for Solutions Journalism (Blantyre)

28 September marks the annual International Safe Abortion Day. As Malawi joins the rest of the world in commemorating the day, it is important for the government to fulfill the commitment made in the National Postabortion Care Policy that 'no woman should suffer or die from complications of abortion in Malawi.'

Despite making the commitment, the reality is that many women and girls continue to die from unsafe abortion.

Recent data from the Ministry of Health shows an upsurge of unsafe abortions in several districts in Malawi, as reflected in the number of women and girls seeking post-abortion care in health facilities.

Continued: https://allafrica.com/stories/202309280103.html

Malawi – Abortion motion withdrawn to pave way for civic education

Jun 17, 2021
Russell Kondowe

Chiradzulu West Member of Parliament Dr Mathews Ngwale has withdrawn his intention to table a private member’s motion on Abortion Bill, saying stakeholders should continue sensitising and civic-educating people in the country about what the bill says.

Ngwale who is also Chairperson
for the Parliamentary Committee on Health said a lot of people are not aware of
the importance for law on safe abortion to be legislated hence it is important
for people to be sensitised.

Continued: https://malawi24.com/2021/06/17/abortion-motion-withdrawn-to-pave-way-for-civic-education/

17.06.2021

Featured

News

Brian Ligomeka

Centre for Solutions Journalism

Dr Mathews Ngwale

Penelope Paliani Kamanga

private member bill on abortion

Termination of Pregnancy Bill

US Catholics funded Malawi opponents of legal abortion in cases of rape

After condemning abortion reform as an imposition of “foreign cultures”, a religious group in Malawi took thousands of dollars in foreign cash

Josephine Chinele
30 March 2021

A Catholic group in Malawi used money from the US to support its campaign against a bill to allow legal abortion in cases of rape – after condemning proposed reforms as an imposition of “foreign cultures”.

The Episcopal Conference of Malawi (ECM), a local assembly of Catholic bishops, received a $30,000 grant from the US Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) in 2019 for “pastoral animation and advocacy of members of parliament and the laity in political leadership”.

Continued: https://www.opendemocracy.net/en/5050/us-catholics-funded-malawi-opponents-legal-abortion-cases-rape/

Malawi Parliament Rejects Debate On Liberalizing Abortion Law

By Lameck Masina
March 12, 2021

BLANTYRE, MALAWI - Malawi's National Assembly has rejected a motion to debate liberalizing the country's strict law against abortion, which is only allowed if the mother's life is at risk.  Despite thousands of Malawian women dying each year from unsafe abortions, lawmakers on Thursday unanimously rejected a motion to debate the long-delayed Termination of Pregnancy Bill.  

The bill, pushed by activists since 2015, aimed to expand legal abortion from cases where the mother’s life is at risk to include rape, incest, fetal deformity, and threats to health. 

Continued: https://www.voanews.com/africa/malawi-parliament-rejects-debate-liberalizing-abortion-law

Malawi: Abortion Bill in Parliament On Thursday As Malawi As Churches Oppose

10 MARCH 2021

By Chipambano Mbewe, Nyasa Times (Leeds)

The Malawi Parliamentary Health Committee says it will present and move a
motion of the Termination of Pregnancy (TOP) bill on Thursday, March 11 2021 in
the Parliament which will also be presented as a Private Member's Bill
respectively in the face of opposition from faith groups.

If passed, the termination of pregnancy bill would allow abortions when a
woman's mental or physical health is in danger, in cases of rape and incest,
and when there are serious foetal abnormalities.

Continued: https://allafrica.com/stories/202103110315.html