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In a year that saw access to reproductive health services diminish due to COVID-19 and associated restrictions, International Women’s Day 2021 provided a welcome opportunity to reflect on, learn about and advocate for important women’s health topics, including access to safe abortion. Unsafe abortion remains a huge cause of preventable maternal mortality and morbidity.
The World Health Organization estimates that around 13% of maternal deaths are attributable to unsafe abortion, and that around 3 in every 4 abortions in Africa and Latin America are unsafe. According to the 2011 Demographic Health Survey, unsafe abortion was a leading cause of preventable maternal death in Mozambique, one of ten countries in FIGO’s Advocating Safe Abortion Project. In order to reverse this dramatic situation that affects girls and women, the new Penal Code of 2014 was approved (law Nr 35/2014 of December 31st), that was revised in 2019 (Law Nr 24/2019 of December 24th), which included,
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Standing in solidarity with women and girls to mark the 2020 global campaign of 16 days of activism to end gender based violence (GBV), the Mozambican Association of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (AMOG), together with its partner Mozambique Radio, launched an information campaign to spread awareness of Mozambique’s abortion law.
Radio listeners in Sofala, Maputo, Tete, Nampula and Xai Xai tuned in to Mozambique radio and participated in a series of radio call-in shows to ask questions and provide thoughts on how awareness and understanding of Mozambique’s abortion law could be strengthened.
Recent history of abortion law in Mozambique
While Mozambique’s abortion law was liberalised in 2014 after a successful campaign led by civil society that AMOG was part of, it took a further six years of campaigning to ensure that the penal code was revised and progressive language included in it to legalise abortion. Mozambique’s abortion law now permits women to have legal a