Health ministry must work to end unsafe abortions

Unsafe abortions are responsible for between 30 per cent to 40 per cent of maternal deaths in Kenya, with more than 21,000 women and girls hospitalised annually. Out of the thousands who are hospitalised, many of them do not survive because of complications that arise.

It is a fact that girls and women continue to lose their lives following the withdrawal of standards and guidelines that enabled health care workers to be educated on safe abortion methods by government and non-governmental actors.

The Constitution guarantees all Kenyans the right to health, including reproductive health and emergency medical health under Article 43 (1)(a) and 43 (2). The Government should abide by this law. 

Unsafe abortions are a serious yet preventable public health problem that could be avoided if the Ministry of Health worked within the law and ensured that women have free and wide access to safe abortion information and services.