By Olusegun Hakeem Adebumiti, Akure.
Experts from the academic, health and the media have recommended a data based approach to reporting safe abortion among teenagers and couples by journalists.
The experts gave the recommendation during a webinar on capacity building for journalists on complex Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights (SRHR) issues and unsafe abortion organised by Academy for Health Development (AHEAD) Programs and the Gutmaccher Institute, New York.
One of the panelists, Shola Ilesanmi while speaking on his experience as a newsroom journalist in Nigeria, disclosed that it is hard to get data from government health facilities on safe and unsafe abortions.
Ilesanmi noted that there are factors militating against the reportage of safe abortion in Nigeria which he said are religious and cultural.
He said it is high time journalists overcome the stereotype and start raising awareness about safe abortion and other issues surrounding it.
The Investigative Journalist and Fact-checker said from information available, most young girls are going into abortion in Nigeria even though it is illegal.
According to him, most of them end up in the hands of quacks and the resultant effects are devastating to their health.
He said media practitioners must start from writing on safe abortion with adequate data that would draw the minds of stakeholders to the issue.
The Vice Chancellor of the University of Medical Sciences (UNIMED), Ondo, Prof. Adesegun Fatusi who is the lead speaker, rolled out data to support the need for young ones and adults to be sensitized on safe abortion.
He disclosed that there is a gap in the academic works on safe abortion, but that things are already changing for the better as more collaborative works are being written on the topics.
He said these are areas journalists can tap for them to get adequate data on the issue.
Prof. Fatusi added that there are technical groups working on adolescent and sexual reproductive health in the country, which he believed could be useful for journalists to get data on abortion.
Grace Gabala, one of the panelists said data reporting is key towards sensitization on safe abortion.
Gabala said a report by Gutmaccher on unsafe abortion showed that countries that legalized and restrained abortion are both victims of the scourge.
She said annual abortion rate in countries where it is legal is 40-1000 women, while in countries that restrained it had 36-1000 women. According to her, reducing the root cause of abortion such as unintended pregnancy is very important.
Gabala called on stakeholders including community leaders and journalists to focus on safe abortion reportage.
“We urge them to report this through the use of data to convey sensitization on unintended pregnancy and safe abortion,” she said.
The two-hour webinar which was moderated by a media consultant, John Paul Akinduro.
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