Sierra Leone’s Abortion Access Bill Could Make History, But it Faces Pushback

Sierra Leone is close to rewriting its future. The West African country is considering passing a bill safeguarding safe abortion rights and reproductive health. The Safe Motherhood and Reproductive Health CareBill was first introduced in 2024 and culminates efforts from women's movements and campaigns beginning with the Safe Abortion Act (2015), which faced obstacles in the legislative arm.

This new bill proposes a comprehensive and inclusive approach to safe abortion procedures in Sierra Leone, a country where a large percentage of the country's mortality rate (one of the highest in the world) is caused byunsafe abortions.

According to the bill, "Safe termination of pregnancy services where; the age of the pregnancy is 14 weeks or less; the continued pregnancy would endanger the life of a pregnant woman or adolescent girl; the termination of pregnancy is necessary to prevent injury to the physical or mental health of a pregnant woman or adolescent girl; there is malformation of the fetus which will affect its viability or incompatibility with life; or the pregnancy is a result of sexual penetration, rape or incest; prevention and treatment of complications of unsafe termination of pregnancy; and obstetric fistula."

Should the bill go through, reproductive rights advocates say it will tackle the contribution of unsafe abortion to maternal deaths and upturn the current law, in place since colonial rule 1861, which criminalizes abortion and limits safe and legal abortion services, particularly in rural areas.

"It will improve access to safe abortion in the country. Our current abortion laws are very restrictive, even though other parts of the world have evolved and adopted new policies protecting women," Hilda, a reproductive health education expert who asked to be anonymous out of concern for their safety, tells OkayAfrica. "This is unacceptable; it leads to high cases of unsafe abortion, leading to high cases of maternal mortality. Aborting colonial laws will push for women to gain autonomy over their bodies and reproductive health."

Although the bill is still under consideration, the issue has been controversial and has received heavy pushback from conservative and religious bodies in Sierra Leone. On Dec. 21, 2024, the Africa Christian Professionals Forum (ACPF) took to Facebook to share a statement establishing their opposition to the bill and its provisions.

"ACPF strongly urges the Government and Members of Parliament of Sierra Leone to withdraw or amend the provisions within the Safe Motherhood and Reproductive Health Care Bill, 2024, that allow the termination of pregnancies up to 14 weeks," the group wrote in its statement. "These provisions violate the Constitution of Sierra Leone, contradict International Conventions to which Sierra Leone is a signatory, and undermine the sanctity of life, which is a fundamental Principle of our shared moral and cultural values," a portion of the statement reads.

Across the continent, religious groups have posed a major stymie for the advancement of progressive human rights policies, from LGBTQ+ rights to legal and improved access to safe abortion services. "It's shaped by the religious belief that termination of pregnancy is murder and that society is degrading into a moral decadence," Rumunse Obi, a reproductive rights advocate, says. "It makes people irrational; they don't believe there's a superior argument. They don't believe in a middle ground; they think it's black and white. And from experiences with issues that concern human beings, nothing is ever black and white. Whether we talk about the HIV pandemic or COVID, several factors affect a person that you cannot just limit them from health care and termination of pregnancy is healthcare."

Hilda says the issue has become politicized, which could gravely affect the bill's outcome. That sentiment is echoed by other Sierra Leoneans spoken to for this story. And riding the coattails of religious opposition is a low sensitization rate about what the bill is for and who it seeks to protect. "It will take more than a bill for a ripple effect to happen," Hilda says. "There needs to be several contextual comprehensive campaigns to ensure that the bill and its needs are clearly explained and understood. In as much as Sierra Leone is secular, the majority of the population strongly believes abortion is a crime."

Ultimately, the passage of this bill could continue a ripple effect reminiscent of countries like Benin with more tolerant abortion policies. "We always hope that people are convicted enough to do the right thing, and while several advocates are working behind the scenes to break the barriers, there's also opposition actively sowing fear, so a lot of it boils down to the political will, of the person in power," Obi says.

Should the bill fall through, Hilda says it could be dangerous for women. "This will make sexual and reproductive health inaccessible, leading to more unsafe abortions and women lacking autonomy over their bodies," Hilda says. "This has always been the "norm" as the majority of our society belongs to religious groups and heeds advice from religious leaders."