Save the Life of the African Female from Abortion to Risk: We All Have a Role to Play

Abstract

Ten years ago, a meeting such as the one held in Adis Ababa in March 2003, in which the participants openly discussed the tragic consequence of unsafe abortion Life and health, reproductive health and abortion were topics that no one spoke about, even in the privacy of their homes or family.

This remains the truth in many of our societies although unprotected sexual activity can have deadly consequences. HIV / AIDS and other sexually transmitted infections ravage the continent, while unwanted pregnancy and unsafe abortion continue to threaten the lives and well-being of millions of women, families and communities African.

Yet what has changed over the past decade is the fact that many public servants (public health experts, among others) now recognize that they can no longer remain silent about these problems if they intend to fulfill their responsibility Towards African citizens. The public health imperative to stop all preventable deaths and all injuries caused by unsafe abortion begins in the end to prevail over the taboos that have hindered discussions of problems and progress on it. The conference on "Action to Reduce Maternal Mortality in Africa: A Consultation on Unsafe Abortion", which took place between 2 and 5 March 2003 in Adis Ababa, Ethiopia, was truly a landmark event In the history of efforts to protect and promote the health and lives of African women, who undoubtedly constitute one of the continent's greatest resources.

A unique and most valuable aspect of the consultation was its varied composition. More than 100 participants came from 15 African countries. These individuals represented a range of perspectives and specialties that often do not maintain professional contact. There were doctors, lawyers, politicians, activists, journalists, youth group leaders, researchers and others; They all shared with enthusiasm their experiences and thoughts and listened with respect to the opinions of others.

Apart from the fact that the discussions in Adis Ababa were enriched by the great diversity of points of view and experiences, they were remarkable in their understanding, which had far exceeded the description and deplorement of the terrible impact Risk abortion has on Africa. Participants consciously focused their attention on the "how", that is, the actions needed to avoid unsafe abortion, including how to avoid unwanted pregnancies and Improving women's access to safe abortion and not on what ". A theme that was repeatedly highlighted and which seemed to be a revelation for many participants was that in every African country there are circumstances in which it was legal to abort, yet a safe legal abortion is rarely available Or accessible. The correction of this discrepancy between the law and the practice is obviously a starting point for all those involved in the act of saving the woman's life and ensuring her rights.

The Adis Ababa consultation was also significant in that it served as a forum for the introduction of the new document of the World Health Organization, Safe Abortion: Technical and Policy Guidance for Health Systems Danger: a technical and policy guide for health systems). This valuable and unprecedented tool is designed to help health systems realize the commitment made in 1999 at a special session of the UN General Assembly, noting in particular that in circumstances where abortion is unavailable, Is not against the law, health systems must train and equip health service providers and they must take other steps to ensure that such an abortion is accessible and safe. Additional measures need to be taken to protect the health of women. This long-awaited document represents a remarkable advance in the global field in the search for the solution of this important public health problem universally recognized for the first time in 1994 at the International Conference on Population and Development in Cairo.

The articles in this volume of the African Journal of Reproductive Health reflect the fruitful discussions that took place in Adis Ababa; They raise very important questions and perhaps more importantly they offer practical strategies for ending unsafe abortion.