CSOs concerned with upsurge of unsafe abortion cases

A consortium of civil society organizations under the banner Breaking Barriers Malawi has expressed concern with the upsurge of unsafe abortion cases in the country.

Coalition for the Prevention of Unsafe Abortion (COPUA), Malawi Human Rights Resource Centre (MHRRC), Centre for Solutions Journalism (CSJ) and Malawi Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights Alliance (SRHR Alliance) and Center for Human Rights and Rehabilitation (CHRR) made the call in a joint statement as Malawi joins the global community in commemorating the International Safe Abortion Day on Thursday.

According to the statement, in 2022 alone about 4,000 women and girls in Blantyre; 7,851 women and girls in Lilongwe and 569 girls and women in Rumphi district sought post abortion care, a situation they have described as worrisome.

The consortium reminded the government to fulfill its commitment made in the National Post-Abortion Care Policy, that ‘no woman should suffer or die from complications of abortion in Malawi’, in order to constraint the number of women who are dying every year due to implications.

The statement reads, “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.”

The advocates further added that Members of the Parliament should also consider enacting Termination of Pregnancy (TOP) Bill as its delay turns to be a major setback.