In Sierra Leone, abortion is a criminal offence. Its abortion law does not specify any grounds for legal abortion. It is unclear whether abortion is permitted to save the life of the mother, as a British judicial decision allowing such abortions is untested in Sierra Leone.[note 1] Abortion is covered in the country's medical code of ethics, but there is no government training for providers. Prosecution of abortion is uncommon.
Abortion has been illegal since 1861, inheriting a British law. In the 2010s and 2020s, activists, politicians, and international organizations have supported proposals to legalise abortion. Religious groups have supported the ban. Sierra Leone ratified the Maputo Protocol in 2015. A bill allowing abortion, first raised in 2010, was approved by Parliament after being introduced by Isata Kabia in 2015. The bill failed as President Ernest Bai Koroma refused to sign it. This law was heavily debated despite a stigma against the subject. In 2022, the government of Julius Maada Bio backed a new reproductive health bill that would lift the abortion ban.
Unsafe abortions are a major factor in Sierra Leone's maternal mortality rate, one of the highest in the world. Post-abortion care is available, primarily using the dilation and curettage method. The country has a stigma surrounding abortion, and many girls have little knowledge of it. Some rely on clandestine providers. Others acquire drugs for self-induced abortions without medical advice. Factors that motivate abortions include inability to afford a baby, disapproval of the relationship by family, and lack of contraceptives. Factors leading women not to have abortions include lack of knowledge and lack of access to providers.
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