Profile of abortion in Nigeria.

This article offers insights on the profile of abortion in Nigeria. The first section of the paper analyzes the legal context of abortion in the country, which is governed by the provisions of the Criminal Penal Codes. Sections 228, 229, 230 and 297 of the Criminal Code and Sections 232 and 234 of the Penal Code define the specific offenses and stipulate the punishment for them. The second section examines the proposed legislation, the ¿Termination of Pregnancy Bill,¿ which was modeled after the English Abortion Act of 1967. Despite the indications that the proposed reforms in the Bill were widely accepted, groups of religious leaders and conservative women's societies pitted themselves against it. The third section provides information on the dimension of the problem in Nigeria based on findings of the different studies on abortion conducted in the region. It is generally estimated that 3 million abortions take place annually in Africa; 700,000 of these abortions may occur in Nigeria. The final section presents a study that utilizes focus group discussions to explore the knowledge, attitudes, beliefs, motives, and behaviors of women towards reproductive health and abortion. In light of the findings presented, the paper outlines policy changes that are needed, advocacy activities to facilitate such changes and areas of further research.