Abortion in Zimbabwe

Abortion in Zimbabwe is only available under limited circumstances. In 2005, IRIN reported that 70,000 illegal abortions took place across the country.^[1] The law on abortions, the Termination of Pregnancy Act of 1977, was enacted while the country was still known as Rhodesia and run by the white minority. The law permits the procedure when "the life of the woman is endangered, the child may suffer a permanent physical or mental defect, or the fetus was conceived as a result of rape or incest."^[1]

In 2015, Phyllis Mbanje wrote that statistics indicate illegal abortions result in at least 20,000 maternal deaths, at least 5% of all maternal deaths, and over 80,000 terminated pregnancies every year in Zimbabwe.^[2]

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