The Declaration issued by African government ministers responsible
for gender and women’s affairs is remarkable for its strong language
around reproductive rights and abortion. It provides a positive
foundation for the Beijing+20 discussions at the 2015 meeting of the
Commission on the Status of Women, as well as for the upcoming
negotiations on the post-2015 development agenda. Key paragraphs from the Addis Declaration include:
3. Women’s reproductive health and HIV/AIDs
(b) Invest in sexual and reproductive
health rights, including by adopting and implementing laws on sexual
and reproductive health, awareness raising and information services for
teenagers and women, including comprehensive sexual health education,
information and services;
(d) Expand the provision of family
planning services and contraceptives and access to safe and legal
abortion services in accordance with national laws and policies, and
protect the reproductive rights of women by authorizing medical abortion
in the case of sexual assault, rape, incest, in line with the Maputo
Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights;
Ipas along with allies and champions from throughout the
region advocated with governments to ensure that the meeting’s outcome
document would protect international agreements such as the 1995 Beijing Platform for Action and the 2003 Maputo Protocol
to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights on the Rights of
Women in Africa, a step forward from the Addis Ababa Declaration on ICPD
Beyond 2014. We recognize essential contributions by Commissioner
Soyata Maiga of the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights;
allies from regional women’s networks, the World Young Women’s Christian
Association (World YWCA), the African Women’s Development and
Communication Network (FEMNET) and Solidarity for African Women’s Rights
(SOAWR); and Ipas staff and partners from Ghana, Malawi, Nigeria, and
Zambia.
A powerful statement from African civil society organizations was
also drafted and disseminated at the Addis meeting. With even stronger
language, the statement calls on nations not only to commit to ensuring
reproductive health for all women and girls, but explicitly calls on
nations to ensure health care for marginalized populations; to remove
restrictive abortion laws; and to address discrimination and inequality
based on sexual orientation and gender identity. This statement provided
an important framework for advocacy with governments, encouraging them
to adopt similar actions.
The Addis meeting was one of several regional meetings taking place to review progress made towards meeting the goals set in the 1995 Platform for Action and prepare for the post-2015 global development agenda. These meetings will culminate at the annual meeting of the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women in March 2015.
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