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Abortion and Postabortion Care In Uganda: A Report from Health Care Professionals and Health Facilities
(Occasional Report, 2005) Prada, Elena; Mirembe, Florence; Ahmed, Fatima H.; Nalwadda, Rose; Kiggundu, Charles
Women in Uganda today give birth to almost seven children, on average—two more children than they would prefer. In fact, nearly 40% of all births in 2000 were unwanted or mistimed, up from 29% of births only five years earlier. Only 23% of married women were using contraceptives in 2000, although this proportion was about five times that in 1988. Given such facts about the gap between their desired family size and their actual fertility, as well as their low likelihood of using contraceptives, it is not surprising that many women turn to abortion. Abortion is illegal in Uganda unless a woman’s pregnancy endangers her life. As a result, the procedure is performed in secrecy and often under dangerous conditions. There are no official statistics even on abortion complications, but what data are available indicate that unsafe abortion in Uganda is a leading cause of maternal morbidity and mortality.