Indian women cautious about Supreme Court’s ‘historic’ abortion ruling

Abortion rights have been extended to unmarried women, but how will this affect women’s lives in reality?

Deepa Parent
12 October 2022

Women who have had abortions in India fear the extension of abortion rights “will do nothing to change the rot in our society”. They say class inequality and prejudice against women still present the biggest barriers to accessing equal reproductive rights in the country.

Their stark warnings contrast with the hopeful note struck by many Indian women and reproductive rights activists, who have called the Supreme Court’s ruling on 29 September “historic” and “progressive”.

Continued: https://www.opendemocracy.net/en/5050/india-abortion-supreme-court-unmarried-women/

Ensuring sexual and reproductive health and rights for youth and adolescents in Myanmar through innovation amid COVID-19 pandemic and political crisis

UNFPA
7 Sep 2022

YANGON, Myanmar— “There is social stigma existing in our community to speak about sexual and reproductive health especially concerning adolescents and youth. People are too shy to talk about it. Since we have grown up under this shadow, we don’t even know that young people have the right to access sexual and reproductive health information,” said Thura, 15, a local youth from Yangon.

Young people in Myanmar face different social and cultural barriers to get right information about sexual and reproductive health and rights. Without having access to sexual and reproductive health information including family planning, young people tend to experience consequences such as unwanted pregnancy and unsafe abortion, leading to other life-threatening complications. According to 2014 Myanmar Population and Housing Census, the fertility rate of females aged 15-19 was 33 births per 1,000 women. Comparing to urban areas, the teenage fertility is higher in rural areas of states and regions. The data highlights the needs to enhance protection and promotion of sexual and reproductive health and rights of women and young people in remote places and in areas undergoing humanitarian crisis.

Continued: https://reliefweb.int/report/myanmar/ensuring-sexual-and-reproductive-health-and-rights-youth-and-adolescents-myanmar-through-innovation-amid-covid-19-pandemic-and-political-crisis

07.09.2022

Featured

News

Aung Pike Tun

Dr. Peter Kivunike Mukasa

International Conference on Population and development

Marie Stopes Myanmar

sexual and reproductive health and rights

UNFPA

United Nations Population Fund

Uganda – We need measures to curb unsafe abortion

Thursday, August 18, 2022
Sauni Samantha Nsiimenta

What you need to know:
Also concerted efforts are needed to reduce the costs associated with post
abortion care

August 12 is commemorated as the International Youth Day, to reflect on the
challenges youth face. In Uganda, one of the biggest challenges that youth,
especially young girls, experience is early pregnancies and unsafe abortion.

Continued: https://www.monitor.co.ug/uganda/oped/commentary/we-need-measures-to-curb-unsafe-abortion-3918118

18.08.2022

Featured

Opinion

International Youth Day

National Policy Guidelines and Service Standards

Sauni Samantha Nsiimenta

Uganda – International Youth Day: Tackling Teenage Pregnancies, Abortion & Maternal Mortality

August 11, 2022
Nsiimenta Sauni Samantha, Advocates for Elimination of Discrimination Against Women

12^th August is a day dedicated to
the role young women and men play in bringing change in tackling global issues
and achieving sustainable development. It also serves as an opportunity to
raise awareness on challenges and problems facing the word’s youth.

In our society, one of the biggest challenges facing the youth has been Teenage
pregnancies and unsafe abortion among others.

Continued: https://chimpreports.com/international-youth-day-tackling-teenage-pregnancies-abortion-maternal-mortality/

11.08.2022

Featured

Opinion

ADAW International

Advocates for Elimination of Discrimination Against Women

International Youth Day

maternal mortality

Nsiimenta Sauni Samantha

Overturning of Roe v Wade abortion law a ‘huge blow to women’s human rights’ warns Bachelet

24 June 2022
United Nations

The widely anticipated Supreme Court decision, by six votes to three, was made in the specific case of Dobbs v Jackson Women’s Health, and Michelle Bachelet said in a statement that it represents a “major setback” for sexual and reproductive health across the US.

The historic decision returns all questions of legality and access to abortion, to the individual states.

Reacting earlier to the US ruling, without making specific reference to it, the UN sexual and reproductive health agency (UNFPA) and the World Health Organization (WHO) noted that a staggering 45 per cent of all abortions around the world, are unsafe, making the procedure a leading cause of maternal death.

Continued: https://news.un.org/en/story/2022/06/1121312

Global reproductive and women’s rights groups react to overturn of Roe v. Wade

June 24, 2022
Malaka Gharib

How will the overturn of Roe v. Wade affect abortion rights and access outside the U.S.?

Groups that are opposed to abortion have welcomed the decision, including the Family Resource Council, which has called it "a major victory for life." But many global reproductive and women's rights groups are condemning the decision and warn that the U.S. overturning of the constitutional right to abortion will have far-reaching effects around the globe. Here's a sampling of reactions:

https://www.npr.org/sections/goatsandsoda/2022/06/24/1107370547/global-reproductive-and-womens-rights-groups-react-to-overturn-of-roe-v-wade

Strategizing to accelerate the reduction of maternal mortality in the African Region

World Health Organization, Regional Office for Africa
29 April 2022

Johannesburg – The African Region accounted for 66% of the 303,000 maternal deaths recorded globally in 2017. To address this situation, WHO in collaboration with UNFPA, UNICEF and partners supports Member States to ensure that all women and girls have access to quality and timely health services, particularly during pregnancy, childbirth, and after delivery, leaving no one behind.

« Most maternal deaths in the Region are attributable to five main causes: haemorrhage, pregnancy-related hypertensive disorders, unsafe abortion, infection, and obstructed labour. Of these, complications of haemorrhage and hypertension account for almost 50% of deaths," said Dr. Owen Kaluwa, WHO Representative in South Africa.

Continued: https://www.afro.who.int/news/strategizing-accelerate-reduction-maternal-mortality-african-region

The Elephant in the Womb: Unintended Pregnancies

22 APRIL 2022
Population Matters

This year’s State of the World Population (SWOP) report by the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) focuses on the worrying issue of unintended pregnancies. Still approximately half of all pregnancies today are unplanned and the number of affected women is increasing. Tackling this crisis is key to achieving a better future and should be an utmost priority.

RUNNING TO SLIDE BACKWARDS?
Since 2019, the annual unintended pregnancy rate fell from 79 to 64 unintended pregnancies for every 1,000 women of child-bearing age (15 to 49 years) – in other words, roughly 6% of the world’s women experience an unintended pregnancy each year, down from 8% in 2019. However, the report points out that due to population growth, the absolute number of affected women has increased by as much as 13% during this time period. This inconvenient truth also applies to the number of girls and women affected by other injustices, such as child marriage and unmet contraceptive needs, alongside many other development indicators, as shown in Population Matters’ 2019 report on population and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Continued: https://populationmatters.org/news/2022/04/elephant-womb-unintended-pregnancies

22.04.2022

State of the World Population Report 2022

Sustainable Development Goals

UNFPA

unintended pregnancy

United Nations Population Fund

India: Why are women seeking unsafe abortions?

Although abortion is legal, over two-thirds of abortions in India are considered to be risky. Barriers to safe abortion include a shortage of doctors in rural areas, a lack of confidentiality and widespread stigma.

April 13, 2022

Chitra (name changed) had to travel more than 40 kilometers (25 miles) from her home to the city of Gurgaon to get an abortion so that her family members would not find out.

"The contraceptive failed, and I did not wish to have a child," she said. "I was repeatedly questioned and treated rudely by the doctors as well as nurses and other staff at the clinic," the 20-year-old student told DW.

Continued: https://www.dw.com/en/india-why-are-women-seeking-unsafe-abortions/a-61464727

Unintended pregnancy rates are highest in Africa: a look at the complex reasons

April 12, 2022
Anthony Idowu Ajayi

The United Nations Population Fund recently released the 2022 State of World Population report. It highlights that almost half of all pregnancies between 2015 and 2019 were unintended. That amounts to roughly 121 million unintended pregnancies each year.

Unintended pregnancy is defined as pregnancy among women who were not planning to have any (more) children. This includes pregnancies that occurred earlier than desired. The report also says over 60% of unintended pregnancies end in abortion. And 45% of all abortions performed globally are unsafe. About 7 million women a year are hospitalised as a result.

Continued: https://theconversation.com/unintended-pregnancy-rates-are-highest-in-africa-a-look-at-the-complex-reasons-180454