Taiwo Jimoh 
A non-governmental organization, Leadership Initiative for Youth Empowerment (LIFE), has urged mothers to teach their daughters comprehensive sex education to prevent unwanted pregnancies and unsafe abortions.
The Executive Director of LIFE, Abiodun Unegbo, who made this call on Tuesday while addressing Journalists in Lagos, noted that Nigeria has one of the highest rates of maternal deaths resulting from unsafe abortion.
Quoting statistics from the World Health Organization (WHO), Unegbo said approximately 2,870 women die each year in Nigeria due to complications from pregnancy and childbirth.
“One of the most preventable causes of maternal mortality in Nigeria is unsafe abortion,” she said.
“About 73 million induced abortions occur globally every year. This is why we urge parents, especially mothers, to talk to their daughters about sex and provide proper sex education.”
Speaking on gender-based violence, Unegbo recounted a recent case in which a woman was assaulted by her husband.
“We attempted to arrest the perpetrator with the assistance of the police. However, the landlord told the woman not to return to his house because she took her husband to the police station.
“These are the challenges we face daily in trying to protect women from abuse,” she lamented.
She expressed concern that despite years of awareness campaigns, many people still do not understand that gender-based violence is a crime punishable under the law.
“In 2024, we carried out research on the number of people killed due to unsafe abortions, and Nigeria was ranked among the highest. Even though abortion is illegal in the country, people still engage in it.
“Our goal is to reduce the number of women dying from such procedures,” she added.
Sharing a tragic incident from one of LIFE’s training sessions, she said: “A 13-year-old Junior Secondary School Student got pregnant.
“Along with three of her friends, they attempted to terminate the pregnancy on their own.
“The girl bled severely and eventually lost her womb. This is why we are intensifying awareness campaigns to educate girls about the dangers of unsafe abortion.”
She also narrated another incident where a woman underwent an abortion by a quack Doctor.
“During the procedure, the woman’s intestines were pulled out, and the person responsible fled. She was later saved at the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital (LASUTH),” she said.
According to a surgeon at LASUTH, between 150 and 200 women undergo abortions at the Hospital yearly, with many suffering from severe complications.
Also speaking, LIFE’s Program Officer, Mokwe Oluwatoyin, emphasized the importance of parental communication.
She urged mothers to establish open relationships with their daughters to foster trust and open dialogue.
“Mothers should regularly talk to their daughters about sex and other important aspects of womanhood. If they don’t learn from home, they’ll learn from the internet,” she said.
Mokwe added that abortion is also common among married women, with some laboratory technicians, who are not qualified medical doctors, performing abortion procedures.
“Young girls go to labs pretending they’re there for tests, but they are often there for abortions. Some parents are even complicit, buying abortion pills for their daughters,” she said.
She identified some root causes of abortion, including unwanted pregnancy, cultural beliefs, and religious barriers to family planning.
“Abstinence doesn’t always work. If sexual activity must happen, men should use condoms to prevent unwanted pregnancies and unsafe abortions,” Mokwe submitted.
