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.
“It is one intervention that is reducing deaths of women and girls from pregnancy related-causes,” Ligomeka said.
He made the observation when the Centre held a sensitization meeting on the proposed Termination of Pregnancy Bill with health workers from Phalombe.
Officials from health facilities from Phalombe said they are striving to offer quality Sexual and Reproductive Health services including family planning, safe motherhood, youth friendly health services, pre and post natal services and post abortion care.
Speaking at the same meeting, Coalition for the Prevention of Unsafe Abortion Secretary General Dr Frnacis Makiya bemoaned the increase of unsafe abortion in Malawi.
He partly attributed the problem to inadequate contraceptive uptake rate and to restrictive abortion laws in Malawi.
“We have a problem. Our laws only allow for abortion in cases where the woman’s life is at risk, making it difficult for women to access safe and timely services. As a result, many women are forced to resort to unsafe methods to terminate unwanted pregnancies, putting their health and lives at risk,” he said.
Unsafe abortions are a major public health issue in Malawi, contributing to high rates of maternal mortality and morbidity.
According to the World Health Organization, approximately 18% of maternal deaths in Malawi are due to complications from unsafe abortions.
“If we can liberalise our laws, maternal deaths caused by unsafe abortions can be drastically reduced and eventually eliminated,” said Makiya.
CSJ has over the years been calling on the Malawi government to prioritize women’s health and rights by expanding access to comprehensive abortion services.