According to the UN’s reproductive health organization, roughly half of all pregnancies worldwide are unwanted. As per the UN Population Fund, more than 60% of 121 million unwanted pregnancies result in abortion each year.
The UNFPA said the report was not about “unwanted babies or happy accidents”. But how a combination of gender inequality, poverty, sexual violence, etc has robbed women of “the most life-altering reproductive choice whether or not to become pregnant”.
According to the research, the war in Ukraine and other wars are projected to raise the “staggering” number of unwanted pregnancies.
“We have heard stories from pregnant women. They knew that nutritionally they weren’t going to be able to support their pregnancy” in Ukraine, UNFPA executive director Natalia Kanem said. (https://inboundrem.com/)
“For the women affected, the most life-altering reproductive choice whether or not to become pregnant is no choice at all. By putting the power to make this most fundamental decision squarely in the hands of women and girls, societies can ensure that motherhood is an aspiration and not an inevitability.”
Nearly 1.4 million unplanned pregnancies in the pandemic’s first year
“There are also predators and traffickers and examples of people who are seeing the tragedy of war as an opportunity to target women and girls,” she told AFP. She further informed that studies mention sexual assault affects more than 20% of displaced women globally.
Data on the Ukraine conflict is still scattered. She predicted that the violence in Afghanistan will result in 4.8 million unplanned pregnancies by 2025. According to the UNFPA, the COVID-19 pandemic has interrupted healthcare and contraceptive supply. It has resulted in up to 1.4 million unplanned pregnancies in the first year of the pandemic alone.
However, the research demonstrates how women’s and girls’ most basic rights are kept aside in times of war. It urges policymakers and health systems to make the prevention of unplanned pregnancies a top priority. They should increase access to, acceptability of, and variety of contraception. They must expand access to high-quality sexual and reproductive health care and information.