Jane Maya, a 19-year-old Kenyan woman, experienced a traumatic incident while trying to procure an abortion at a backstreet clinic in Nairobi's Kibera slums. Her then-boyfriend had dumped her after she got pregnant, leading Maya to seek help from a neighbor who took her to the clinic. Unfortunately, the abortion backfired, and the medics abandoned her, leaving Maya to fend for herself.
Afraid of being reported to the police, Maya returned home in the middle of the night and attempted to stop the bleeding by boiling water. However, her condition worsened, and she began to smell due to an infection. A woman who had taken her to the clinic visited her the next day and used a wooden cooking stick to remove fetal tissues from her womb, causing Maya excruciating pain.
The makeshift procedure stopped the bleeding but led to a severe infection that made Maya's body ooze a foul odor. She became isolated, with nobody wanting to get close to her, earning her the nickname 'walking mortuary' in her community. Maya's ordeal highlights the risks associated with unsafe abortions, which can result in infections, severe hemorrhage, and uterus perforation.
Dr. Musoba Kitui describes unsafe abortion as the use of unqualified health service providers and unsterile equipment, which can lead to severe complications. He notes that foul-smelling discharge indicates acute bacterial infection from retained products of conception or dirty equipment. Immediate complications can include septic shock, multi-organ failure, and pelvic abscesses.
Advocacy groups in Kenya are campaigning to ensure that constitutional rights are protected to prevent deaths from unsafe clandestine abortions and guarantee access to Post-Abortion Care (PAC). Activist Mary Njoki notes that many young women resort to unsafe abortion due to stigma from friends and family, often using dangerous items such as detergents, sugar, and herbal mixtures to terminate pregnancies.
A national study published in May 2025 estimated that 792,694 induced abortions occurred in Kenya in 2023, with only 18% of primary-level facilities and 24% of referral-level facilities meeting the standards for comprehensive post-abortion care. Globally, the World Health Organization estimates that around 45% of induced abortions are classified as unsafe.
Maya attributes her botched abortion predicament to a lack of information about post-abortion care (PAC). She is now a PAC campaigner, advocating for accessible contraception, accurate reproductive health information, and lawful and safe abortion care. Despite progress made in access to PAC, Kenya is experiencing resistance to these gains, including a recent Court of Appeal ruling that quashed a petition to stop a criminal case against a young woman who received post-abortion care and a healthcare provider who administered it.
Key points
- Unsafe abortions can result in severe complications, including infections, severe hemorrhage, and uterus perforation.
- Many young women in Kenya resort to unsafe abortion due to stigma from friends and family.
- There is a need for accessible contraception, accurate reproductive health information, and lawful and safe abortion care in Kenya.
