Human rights advances in women's reproductive health in Africa

The African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights recently adopted General Comment No 2 to interpret provisions of Article 14 of the Protocol to the African Charter on the Rights Women. The provisions relate to women’s rights to fertility control, contraception, family planning, information and education, and abortion. The present article highlights the General Comment’s potential to promote women’s sexual and reproductive rights in multiple ways. The General Comment’s human rights value goes beyond providing stateswith guidance for framing their domestic laws, practices, and policies to complywith treaty obligations. General Comment No 2 is invaluable in educating all stakeholders—including healthcare providers, lawyers, policymakers, and judicial officers at the domestic level—about pertinent jurisprudence. Civil society and human rights advocates can use the General Comment to render the state accountable for failure to implement its treaty obligations.http://www.elsevier.com/locate/ijgo2016-05-31hb201

Woman-Centred Safe Abortion Care in Africa

Unsafe abortion in Africa affects not only women, but also their children, families and communities. To counter this extremely costly yet easily preventable problem, African nations must ensure that health systems are trained and equipped to help prevent unwanted pregnancy, to treat women in emergency situations, and to make safe abortion services available to the full extent of the law. One critical component of this process is comprehensive woman-centred care, an approach that emphasises access, choice and quality of services. This article examines this and the obstacles to safe abortion care, as well as how they can be overcome through broad-based partnerships. (Afr J Reprod Health 2004; 4[1]:37-42) RÉSUMÉ Le soin d‘avortement centré sur la femme en Afrique. L‘avortement à risque en Afrique n'affecte pas que les femmes, mais aussi leurs enfants, leurs familles et leurs communautés. Pour combattre ce problème extrêmement coûteux et pourtant facilement évitable, les nations africaines doivent s‘assurer que des systèmes de santé sont formés et équipés pour aider à prévenir la grossesse non-désirée, à soigner les femmes en cas d‘urgence et à rendre disponible des services d‘avortement à risque selon la loi. Une partie critique de ce processus est le soin compréhensif centré sur la femme, une approche qui met l‘accent sur le choix et la qualité de services. Cet article examine ce problème et les obstacles au soin d‘avortement sans risque, aussi bien que la manière dont ils peuvent être surmontés à travers les collaborations à tendances très variées. (Rev Afr Santé Reprod 2004; 4[1]:37-42

Editorial: Saving African Women's Lives from Unsafe Abortion - Everyone Has a Role to Play

Sauver la Vie de la Femme Africaine de l'Avortement à Risquer : Nous Avons Tous un Rôle à Jouer No Abstract availabl

Global policy change and women's access to safe abortion: The impact of the World Health Organization's guidance in Africa

Along with governments from around the world, African leaders agreed at the International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) in 1994 to address unsafe abortion as a major public health problem. At the five-year review of the ICPD, they decided further that health systems should make safe abortion services accessible for legal indications. Based on this mandate, the World Health Organization (WHO) developed norms and standards for quality abortion services, Safe Abortion: Technical and Policy Guidance for Health Systems, released in 2003. While abortion-related maternal mortality and morbidity remains very high in many African countries, stakeholders are increasingly using WHO recommendations in conjunction with other global and regional policy frameworks, including the African Union Protocol on the Rights of Women in Africa, to spur new action to address this persistent problem. Efforts include: reforming national laws and policies; preparing service-delivery guidelines and regulations; strengthening training programs; and expanding community outreach programs. This paper reviews progress and lessons learned while drawing attention to the fragility of the progress made thus far and the key challenges that remain in ensuring access to safe abortion care for all African women.Modification de la politique mondìale et l'accès par la femme à l'avortement sans danger: L'impact du conseil de l'Organisation mondiale de la santé en Afrique. Au cours de la Conférence Internationale sur la Population et le Développment (CIPD) en 1994, les leaders africains et les gouvernements partout dans le monde se sont mis d'accord pour s'occuper de l'avortement dangereux comme étant un problème majeur de la santé publique. Pendant la revue de cinq ans de la CIPD, ils ont decidé en plus que les systèmes de santé doivent rendre les services de l'avortement sans danger accessibles pour des indications lègales. Se fondant sur ce mandat, l'organisation mondiale de la santé (OMS) a élaboré des normes et des standards permettant de rendre des services de l'avortement de qualité, L'avortement sans danger: Les conseils technique et politique pour les systèmes de santé, publié en 2003. Alors que la mortalité et la morbidité liées à l'avortement restent très élevées dans plusieurs pays d'Afrique, les dépositaires d'enjeux se servent de la OMS conjointement avec d'autres cadres de la politique régionale et mondiale y compris le protocole de l'Union Africaine sur les Droits de la Femme en Afrique pour encourager une nouvelle action pour s'occuper de ce problème continuel. Les efforts comprement: la réforme des lois et des politiques nationales; la préparation des conseils et des réglements concernant la prestation de service; le renforcement des programmes de formation; et l'élargissement des programmes de l'information au niveau de la communauté. Cet article passe en revue le progrès et les leçons apprises tout en tirant l'attention sur la fragilité du procès fait jusqu'ici et les défis clé qui ne sont pas encore atteints pour assurer l'accès au services du soin de l'avortement sans danger pour toutes les femmes africaines

Human rights advances in women's reproductive health in Africa

The African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights recently adopted General Comment No 2 to interpret provisions of Article 14 of the Protocol to the African Charter on the Rights Women. The provisions relate to women’s rights to fertility control, contraception, family planning, information and education, and abortion. The present article highlights the General Comment’s potential to promote women’s sexual and reproductive rights in multiple ways. The General Comment’s human rights value goes beyond providing stateswith guidance for framing their domestic laws, practices, and policies to complywith treaty obligations. General Comment No 2 is invaluable in educating all stakeholders—including healthcare providers, lawyers, policymakers, and judicial officers at the domestic level—about pertinent jurisprudence. Civil society and human rights advocates can use the General Comment to render the state accountable for failure to implement its treaty obligations.http://www.elsevier.com/locate/ijgo2016-05-31hb201

Decentralising Postabortion Care in Africa: A Call to Action

Unsafe abortion claims the lives of tens of thousands of women in the world each year, disproportionately affecting women in Africa. Postabortion care, including emergency treatment of incomplete abortion, is a strategy that can reduce the morbidity and mortality related to unsafe abortion, but only if services are readily accessible to women. To meet the needs of women, mid-level health professionals such as midwives should be authorised and trained to provide postabortion care. The multifaceted approach used to decentralise postabortion care services in Ghana can be used as model to improve access to postabortion care in countries throughout Africa. Countries should take immediate action to decentralise postabortion care, addressing issues of policy and standards, clinical protocols, advocacy, research, training, supervision, and community education. (Afr J Reprod Health 1999; 3 (1): 109 - 114) Key Words: Gonorrhiea, infertility, serology, Mozambiqu