Abortion has been legal in South Africa since the enactment of the 1996 Choice on Termination of Pregnancy Act. But unsafe abortion is prevalent and particularly impacts poor women and girls and those who live in rural areas. In 2012, nearly 50 percent of adolescent abortions occurred outside of a clinical setting. Most were likely unsafe.
Ipas South Africa partners with health departments in two provinces, Gauteng and Limpopo, to increase women’s access to safe, high-quality abortion. Programs include training safe abortion providers and clinic staff and supporting facilities to provide safe abortion services. Ipas South Africa also works with partners to advocate for public commitment to legal, accessible abortion. Beginning in 1995, Ipas partnered with South Africa’s National Department of Health and all nine Provincial Departments of Health to increase access to safe abortion care. Ipas closed its South Africa office in 2014 and reopened in 2017.
Program of Ipas Africa Southern Region
Office: Midrand
Ipas Africa Southern Region commemorates the International Day of the Girl Child
Ipas Africa Southern Region (ASR) joined the world to commemorate the International Day of the Girl Child reflecting on this year’s theme: Invest in Girls’ Rights: Our Leadership, Our Well-being.
Invest in girls’ rights to create an equitable and prosperous future
Celebrating Women’s Day and women’s month in South Africa
Women’s Day marks a historic moment in South Africa when over 15,000 women in 1956 marched to the Union Buildings to petition against the passage of laws that violated basic human rights.
