Unsafe abortion still killing Nigerian women, Ipas demands legal reform

By Chioma Obinna

On this year’s International Women’s Day, experts from the Ipas Nigeria Health Foundation have warned that unsafe abortion remains a major but preventable cause of maternal deaths in Nigeria, calling for urgent legal reform and expanded access to safe reproductive healthcare for women and girls.

The organisation urged government and stakeholders to create a more supportive environment that empowers women and girls to make informed decisions about their health and lives.

Aligning their message with the 2026 theme, “Give to Gain,” the organisation stressed that when women have access to safe abortion care and accurate information, maternal deaths decline significantly.

According to the group, although safe abortion, when provided by trained healthcare professionals or self-managed with approved medication, is medically safe, many Nigerian women are still pushed toward dangerous alternatives due to stigma, restrictive laws, and limited access to services.

They noted that unsafe abortion accounts for at least 13 per cent of maternal mortality in Nigeria, making it one of the leading but preventable causes of death among women of reproductive age.

“Safe abortion, when provided by trained healthcare professionals or self-managed with prescribed medication, is extremely safe,” the organisation stated.

“However, persistent myths, restrictive laws, moral and religious stigma, and limited access to services mean abortion remains unsafe for many women in Nigeria.”

Citing global medical evidence, the experts said safe abortion care is significantly safer when properly provided, yet unsafe procedures continue to claim lives largely because women are forced to seek care in secrecy or from untrained providers.

The organisation also raised concerns over the devastating consequences of sexual violence, noting that many survivors of rape and incest face unwanted pregnancies with few safe options.

Research by Ipas Nigeria indicates that 76 per cent of women and girls aged 15 to 49 have experienced sexual violence, with about three out of every 25 survivors becoming pregnant as a result of rape.

“These women and girls are often forced into unsafe alternatives or required to carry unwanted, trauma-inducing pregnancies because of stigma and lack of safe services.”

Describing unsafe abortion as a preventable public health crisis, the group urged the Nigerian government to reform outdated abortion laws, strengthen training for healthcare providers, and create policies that allow women and girls to make informed reproductive health decisions without fear or stigma.

Speaking on the urgent need for reform, the Country Director of Ipas Nigeria Health Foundation, Dr. Lucky Palmer, said Nigeria’s abortion law, which dates back more than 150 years, continues to limit women’s ability to access safe care.

“Our law is over 150 years old, a colonial law,” Palmer said. “We have effectively handcuffed women’s ability to make better decisions by attaching stigma and shame to abortion care instead of empathy.”

He urged policymakers to use the momentum of International Women’s Day to prioritise reforms that protect women’s health and dignity.

“This International Women’s Day, we must commit to giving women a safe environment to make informed choices by ensuring accurate information, providing safe abortion care, and creating laws that protect abortion access,” he added.

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