Frank Ikpefan, Abuja
A civil society organisation, Vision Spring Initiatives, has said that women and girls in Nigeria must be protected from unsafe abortion during pregnancy through strict government legislation so as to minimise maternal death.
The group noted that women and girls must be empowered on their rights, adding that it was regrettable that Nigeria still had a high maternal mortality.
The Vision Spring Initiatives’ Project Director, Ngozi Nwosu-Juba, stated this in Abuja during a national mock tribunal on sexual and reproductive health and rights conference.
She said: “Nigeria has the third highest infant mortality in the world and also the largest contributor to global mortality rate. The rates are high, not because diseases leading to death cannot be cured or prevented.
“But it is because women and girls are dying from preventable and treatable sexual health complications as a result of entrenched resistance to women’s autonomy and control over their bodies.
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“This is often justified on the basis of culture or religion. Poor health care systems and weak policy implementation add to women’s risk of death.
“There is need for universal access to quality and affordable sexual and reproductive health education, including services.
“Central to women and girls’ health and well-being is the realisation of their human rights, including their sexual and reproductive rights.
“We are working to empower women and girls, raise awareness on their rights, advocate for the adoption and implementation of laws and policies that prohibit and prevent sexual violence and unsafe abortion.”
The group noted that the government’s commitment to the adopted Universal Health Coverage Declaration must focus on women and girls especially.
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