by Awa Faye
18 August 2026
“Must women continue to die from preventable causes?” This was the question posed by State-Certified Midwife and expert in Maternal and Neonatal Health (MNH) Strategies, Adama Sanokho, this Tuesday, during her presentation on the health rationale for “the medicalization of abortion in Senegal, an essential strategy to save lives.” From the outset, she stated, quoting Simone Veil in 1974, that no woman resorts to abortion lightly. But nothing stops a woman who has decided to have an abortion. Not even the law. Thus, she spoke of a “silent emergency” in public health.
Avortement clandestin : « L’urgence silencieuse »
qui tue à petit feu
“Unsafe abortions remain a preventable cause of maternal mortality. Six out of ten unwanted pregnancies end in induced abortion. Approximately 45% of abortions worldwide are performed under unsafe conditions,” the expert stated.
“Must women continue to die from preventable causes?” This was the question posed by State-Certified Midwife and expert in Maternal and Neonatal Health (MNH) Strategies, Adama Sanokho, this Tuesday, during her presentation on the health rationale for “the medicalization of abortion in Senegal, an essential strategy to save lives.” From the outset, she stated, quoting Simone Veil in 1974, that no woman resorts to abortion lightly. But nothing stops a woman who has decided to have an abortion. Not even the law. Thus, she spoke of a “silent emergency” in public health.
“There are 153 maternal deaths per 100,000 live births, according to the Demographic and Health Survey (DHS 2023). Haemorrhage remains the leading cause; it was at 37% in 2019, and in 2023, it reached 41%. These are the direct results of the surveillance of maternal deaths and abortions conducted by the Ministry of Health. Unsafe abortions remain a preventable cause of maternal mortality. Six out of ten unwanted pregnancies end in induced abortion. Approximately 45% of abortions worldwide are performed under unsafe conditions,” the expert stated.
Worse still, in the world, in 2023, a woman dies every 9 minutes as a result of an unsafe abortion.
The State Midwife also raised the issue of inequality related to age and target population. According to the WHO, at least one in ten women aged 15 to 19 has been forced into sexual relations or sexual assault. Economic inequalities were also cited. “Abortion is performed, even though it’s illegal. Now the difference lies in whether or not one has the means. So there’s an equity problem. Abortions cost 500,000 or 150,000 FCFA, or sometimes women have to travel to get them.” “Poor women are more likely to resort to dangerous methods or unqualified people, increasing the risk of complications and death,” she stressed, during a refresher workshop on advocacy for access to medical abortion in cases of rape and incest and if the mother’s health is at risk, organized by the Association of Journalists in Health, Population and Development (AJSPD) in collaboration with MSI Reproductive Choices Senegal.
Thus, Adama Sanokho argues that this lack of access to quality abortion care can lead to physical and mental complications, as well as a social and financial burden on women, communities, and healthcare systems. “The lack of timely access to safe, affordable, and respectful abortion is a major public health problem and a human rights issue. Maternal deaths due to unsafe abortions are often misclassified and underreported because of stigma,” she states.
Haemorrhages, infections, uterine perforations by sharp or pointed objects, injuries to the genital tract…
Risks to physical health include incomplete evacuation of tissues and products of pregnancy partially removed or expelled from the uterus, haemorrhages (heavy bleeding), infections, perforations of the uterus by a sharp or pointed object, and injuries to the genital tract and internal organs by insertion of dangerous objects into the vagina or anus.
On a social level, the expert in maternal, child, and newborn health says that abortion remains taboo, and women who have had abortions still face stigma. “The influence of religion is strong,” she points out. “Society’s view of a woman who has had an unsafe abortion remains very burdensome: discrimination, stigmatization, guilt, and social exclusion. Some people even consider them criminals. Unsafe abortion is a very traumatic experience for women: remorse, confusion, distress, depression, and even suicide,” she notes.
“Abortion is always a difficult experience for a woman. It is always difficult to differentiate what is due to facing contraceptive failure and an unwanted pregnancy from what is due to having been led to decide to terminate it. The other reason is that this subject remains very sensitive with multiple cultural, religious, ideological, social and legal interferences,” she says, from a psychological point of view.
The state-certified midwife stated that “in our society, medical abortion should be neither demonized nor trivialized.” She asserted that “it is a fundamental right of women.”
SOURCE: Seneweb: https://www.seneweb.com/en/news/8/avortement-clandestin-lurgence-silencieuse-qui-tue-a-petit-feu_n_501751.html. 18 August 2026.