By Purity Nthiana
On average, seven women die every single day in Kenya from complications of unsafe abortions. That’s not a rumor. That’s a cold, bloody fact. But let’s start with the obvious: we’re in 2025. But somehow Kenya’s policies on reproductive health still read like they were written in the 1800s by a committee of confused uncles. The kind that won’t say the word “vagina” out loud but want to decide what happens to yours. At the heart of this sensitive conversation is a court case that could rewrite the script on reproductive health in Kenya: Network for Adolescent and Youth of Africa (NAYA-Kenya) & Another v. Attorney General & 4 Others, also known as Petition No. 428 of 2018. Yes, you read that right, 2018. This case has been dragging on for several years.
Back in 2018, Marie Stopes Kenya (then), in collaboration with the Ministry of Health, ran a campaign to reduce unsafe abortions. You would think that a country trying to lower maternal mortality would welcome such efforts. But instead, the Kenya Film Classification Board (yes, the people in charge of banning kissing scenes) jumped in and declared the campaign illegal, claiming it was “promoting abortion.” Next, the Kenya Medical Practitioners and Dentists Board (KMPDB) and the Director of Medical Services told Marie Stopes to stop offering post-abortion care. Let that sink in. They banned care after an abortion. What were they hoping for, exactly? That women would bleed out as punishment for not asking permission? Then again, was the Ministry of Health not in collaboration?
The Network for Adolescent and Youth of Africa (NAYA-Kenya) and a brave woman named Jackline Mary Karanja. They decided enough was enough. They filed a case, Petition 428 of 2018, against the Attorney General, the Ministry of Health, and several regulatory boards, saying that these actions were not just unconstitutional but deadly. They had a point. Our Constitution, under Article 43, guarantees every Kenyan the right to the highest attainable standard of health. Article 26 (4) also allows safe medical abortion procedures when a trained health professional deems it necessary to protect the life or health of the woman. Let us remember that mental health is a part of healthcare as well. Not a priest. Not an elder. Not your uncle with a WhatsApp theology degree. A health professional. And while they argue over morality, girls as young as 10 are getting pregnant from rape and incest, and dying from backstreet abortions with wire hangers and herbs. But sure, let’s silence the radio ads and close clinics because a 1950s definition of “decency” matters more than actual human life.
While the case slowly creeps through the judicial system, it’s been dragging on for over six years. Along the way, pending the judgment, the situation on the ground remains dire for many girls and women. The bans, though partially lifted, have had a chilling effect. Health providers are afraid. Women are confused. Girls are suffering. And the silence from the Ministry of Health is louder than a scream. What NAYA and Jackline are asking for isn’t unreasonable. They want the court to declare the bans unconstitutional. They want the government to stop interfering in medical spaces with religious noise. They want the Ministry to do its job and educate the public. Imagine, asking a Health Ministry to talk about health.
Organizations like the Center for Reproductive Rights, Guttmacher Institute, and the WHO all back the science. When you restrict access to safe abortion, maternal deaths go up. When you provide information, you save lives. This is not debatable. It is not even controversial. Unless, of course, you live in a country where policy is written by men who still think periods are a curse.
Miss Nthiana is a Sexual and Reproductive Health Advocate at NAYA KENYA
