Abortion incidence and morbidity in Ethiopia: An examination of the effects of the policy change between 2008-2014
Abstract: Ethiopia, with a population of 95 million, is the second most populated country in Africa. In 2005, the Ethiopian Parliament amended the penal code to allow abortion when women have experienced rape/incest, if she has physical or mental disabilities; it is needed to preserve her life or physical health; or she is a minor who is physically or mentally unprepared for childbirth. We conducted a study using the Abortion Incidence Complications Methodology (AICM) and the Prospective Morbidity Methodology (PMM) to determine the incidence of abortion to assess progress in Ethiopia since the last incidence study was conducted in 2008. This is one of the very few studies to measure change over time in abortion practice in response to a liberalization of the law. Ethiopia has made substantial progress in expanding comprehensive abortion care. While women seeking abortion-related services are benefiting from increased access to healthcare services, abortions occurring outside of health facilities nevertheless remain a reality which must be addressed.
Dr. Ann Moore is a Senior Research Associate at Guttmacher Institute, New York, NY and adjunct faculty member at State University of New York, Albany, NY. She received her PhD in 1996 at University of Texas at Austin
