The Women Advocate Research and Documentation Centre (WARDC) has warned that unsafe abortion remains a major contributor to maternal deaths in Nigeria, calling for urgent reforms of the country’s restrictive abortion laws.
WARDC made this announcement through its leader, Prof. Abiola Akiyode-Afolabi. They did this to recognize the 2026 International Safe Abortion Day.
This worldwide event has the theme “Solidarity in Action: Advance Reproductive Justice and Urgently Strengthen Health Systems for Comprehensive Abortion Care.”
The group said that Nigeria can’t reduce the number of mothers dying if unsafe abortion keeps happening and causing deaths and serious health problems.
According to WARDC, this year’s campaign theme gives Nigeria a chance to deal with the harm caused by unsafe abortion and improve its hospitals and clinics to protect women and girls.
The organisation noted the prevalence of maternal mortality burden in Nigeria, with an estimated 1,000 maternal deaths per 100,000 live births in 2023, adding that unsafe abortion was recognised among the causes of maternal deaths in the country.
A comprehensive nationwide study reveals a sobering reality: approximately 1.25 million abortions occurred in Nigeria during 2012, with roughly 212,000 women requiring medical intervention for complications stemming from unsafe abortion procedures.
Alarmingly, the report further documents that an additional 285,000 women experienced severe health complications yet remained unable to access the critical medical care they desperately needed.
WARDC underscores a critical national estimate indicating that approximately 6,000 women lose their lives annually due to unsafe abortion—a figure the organization emphasizes represents a conservative estimate, as abortion-related deaths frequently go unreported or become misclassified under alternative causes.
“These statistics embody real women and girls whose lives, health, and futures face irreversible transformation,” the organization powerfully stated.
The organization further highlights the particularly vulnerable situation facing adolescents, citing UNICEF data demonstrating that Nigeria experiences 75 births per 1,000 girls aged 15-19, with teenage pregnancy occurring significantly more frequently in rural communities.
According to WARDC, when girls who become pregnant through rape or incest cannot access appropriate reproductive healthcare when needed, this in turn compounds their Trauma.
A Child who has survived sexual abuse merits comprehensive safeguarding, essential medical care, and dignified respect—not additional trauma, stigmatization, and exposure to dangerous abortion procedures,
The organisation advocated for Nigeria’s laws to shift from a punishment-focused approach to a compassionate, rights-centred and medically supervised framework for safe abortion care.
It stressed that these changes must define permissible abortion circumstances, protect confidentiality and autonomous choice, establish standards for qualified providers and facilities, strengthen referral systems and deliver thorough post-abortion care, while preventing women and girls from experiencing risky procedures, coercion and discrimination.
WARDC urged the Federal Government, National Assembly, state authorities and stakeholders to prioritise legislative and policy reforms, strengthen healthcare infrastructure and distribute accurate information on abortion and reproductive health.
It highlighted that no woman should face loss of life because she lacked access to safe medical care, emphasising that Nigeria cannot lower maternal death rates without addressing the dangers of unsafe abortion.
”It is time to move from criminalisation to safe, regulated and rights-based abortion care.
(NAN)
