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Collecting data on self-managed abortion in humanitarian and fragile settings: A global initiative

Around the world, more than 84 million people have been forcibly displaced, and one in four are women and girls of reproductive age who face higher risks of unintended pregnancy, unsafe abortion and maternal death. Yet, despite these urgent needs, reliable data on sexual and reproductive health (SRH) in humanitarian settings remain scarce. Abortion, in particular, is often politicized and excluded from data collection, making it difficult for governments, NGOs and global health organizations to design, deliver and evaluate life-saving interventions.
To bridge this gap, the project worked to improve the routine collection of abortion-related data in humanitarian settings. It helped establish, for the first time, a core set of SRH indicators, including abortion indicators that are now shaping how reproductive health data are collected globally. Building on this progress, the project expanded its focus to include self-managed abortion, a growing and essential form of reproductive self-care in fragile and conflict-affected settings where formal health services are limited or inaccessible. In particular, the project explored the growth of demedicalized and technology-facilitated medication abortion interventions among refugees and displaced populations across target geographies.

“We are delighted to build on our previous collaborative to explore how to capture information about self-managed abortion in fragile and humanitarian settings. We look forward to collaborating with both local partners in five countries and global partners to showcase and support innovative best practices.”
Dr Angel M. Foster, University of Ottawa

What are the data problems that this Lab is working to solve?

This initiative will establish recommendations regarding the collection of rigorous, high-quality information about self-managed abortion in fragile and humanitarian settings and work with stakeholders to develop tools to facilitate the uptake of these recommendations. The proposed initiative consists of three phases:

1) Conducting rapid assessments in five countries;

2) Developing recommendations and tools to support uptake and build stakeholder capacity; and

3) Disseminating findings to local and global audiences.