Delays in implementing a High Court ruling affirming access to safe abortion for adolescent survivors of sexual violence could continue exposing young women and girls to unsafe procedures and life-threatening complications, the Ladder for Rural Development Organisation (LAFFORD) has warned.
LAFFORD is urging the Ministry of Health to swiftly implement the ruling, saying clear guidelines are needed to ensure survivors can exercise their sexual and reproductive health rights.
Executive Director for LAFFORD, Godfrey Kamunda, says the Ministry has remained silent on the implementation of the ruling since it was delivered in October 2025.
Kamunda says delays in developing and implementing clear guidelines, as directed by the court, could continue putting the lives of young women and girls at risk and undermine their sexual and reproductive health rights.
“The Ministry needs to act swiftly because these are matters concerning the lives and rights of young women and girls,” Kamunda says.
Kamunda adds that community members and traditional leaders have welcomed the ruling, while women and girls are waiting for key implementation measures that would enable them to fully benefit from it.
In picture: Executive Director for LAFFORD, Godfrey Kamunda
“The delay is hindering and affecting women, and it is putting some girls at risk of complications due to unsafe abortions, which has led others to experience different forms of disabilities,” he says.
Concurring with LAFFORD, General Manager for Umunthu FM, Edward Kuwacha, says proper implementation of key aspects of the ruling, including the review of the Post-Abortion Care Guidelines, could help save lives.
Umunthu FM is implementing a project dubbed Pamoja, which, among other objectives, seeks to promote access to sexual and reproductive health information and services for girls and women.
Kuwacha says the station is conducting radio programmes to ensure that people understand the ruling and the proposed Termination of Pregnancy (TOP) Bill and have accurate information on the issues.
He adds that authorities need to remember that Malawi is a party to the African Union’s 2003 Maputo Protocol, which provides for comprehensive rights and protections relating to sexual and reproductive health and rights.
“We need to understand that the protocol calls for the protection of women’s reproductive health rights by authorizing medical abortion in cases of sexual assault, rape, incest, and where continuing the pregnancy endangers the mental or physical health of the mother or the foetus,” he says.
Meanwhile, Chairperson for the Coalition for the Prevention of Unsafe Abortion, Nyatuwe Phiri, says it is unfortunate that some people are spreading what she describes as misleading information about the proposed Termination of Pregnancy (TOP) Bill.
The bill seeks to reform Malawi’s abortion laws and address health risks associated with unsafe abortion.
“It is sad that messages against the TOP Bill are spreading, and they only present one-sided information, which is misleading the public,” Phiri says.
She says the proposed legislation would expand access to legal and safe abortion services in specified circumstances, including severe foetal malformation and pregnancies resulting from rape, incest, defilement and sexual assault.
“The bill only expands legal and safe abortion access to include cases of severe foetal malformation and pregnancies resulting from rape, incest, defilement and sexual assault, just to mention a few,” she says.
Phiri adds that the debate should also consider the experiences of women and girls from poor and rural communities who face challenges accessing safe abortion services.
She says such women and girls can be disproportionately affected when they are unable to access appropriate reproductive health services.
Phiri further describes the High Court ruling as a significant milestone, saying its impact will depend on effective implementation and collaboration between government and organisations working on sexual and reproductive health rights.
“That ruling is a triumph. As one of the organisations advocating for its implementation and conducting awareness among the public, we need more voices in unison to ensure implementation and good working collaboration with the Ministry of Health,” Phiri says.
According to the Guttmacher Institute, between 2015 and 2019, Southern Africa recorded an estimated 2.28 million pregnancies annually, of which 1.48 million were unintended and about 526,000 ended in abortion.
On October 28, 2025, High Court Judge Justice Mike Tembo ruled in AC (a minor) v Attorney General and Others that a girl who becomes pregnant as a result of a sexual offence has a right to seek an abortion. The court found that denying a 13-year-old survivor of rape access to safe abortion violated her sexual and reproductive health rights under the Gender Equality Act.
The court also ordered the Ministry of Health to review and amend the Post-Abortion Care Guidelines within 180 days to provide clear guidance on lawful access to abortion for child survivors of sexual violence, as well as ensure that health workers are adequately informed and trained.
However, the 180-day period elapsed without the revised guidelines being finalised, according to reports published in 2026.
The Ministry of Health has referred the matter to the Attorney General’s Office, which has requested more time to respond to the issues raised.
