As Nigeria joins the rest of the world to mark International Safe Abortion Day, the Women Advocates Research and Documentation Centre (WARDC) has issued a stark warning on the rising toll of unsafe abortions in Nigeria, calling for urgent reforms to protect women’s health and lives.

Speaking on Sunday, Founding Director of WARDC, Dr. Abiola Akiyode-Afolabi, said the day served as a reminder that “access to safe abortion is a human right. It is a matter of dignity, bodily autonomy, and health.”

She stressed that restrictive laws, stigma, poverty, and limited access to information continue to push women, particularly those who are young, poor, or living in rural areas into unsafe procedures that cost lives.

Citing data from the Guttmacher Institute, Akiyode-Afolabi noted that Nigeria accounts for a significant share of the nearly 47,000 deaths recorded globally each year from unsafe abortions. “These deaths are entirely preventable. The silence, the stigma, and the inaction must end. The Nigerian government has a responsibility to protect the lives and health of its citizens including women seeking reproductive health services.”

Akiyode-Afolabi insisted that Nigeria must confront the reality of what she described as a systemic failure to protect women’s rights and lives.

“We need to review our abortion laws, provide comprehensive sexuality education, ensure access to contraceptives, and invest in post-abortion care. Most importantly, we must stop criminalising women and healthcare providers who are acting within ethical and professional standards,” she said.

As women’s rights advocates across the globe amplify calls for access to safe and legal abortion, WARDC continually fights for a future where no Nigerian woman dies because she sought control over her own reproductive life.

“We cannot continue to ignore this crisis. It is time to protect women’s health, dignity, and autonomy,” Akiyode-Afolabi added.