In Ogun State, 36 out of every 100 pregnancies are unintended, contributing to alarmingly high abortion-related deaths. Tragically, 179 women per 100,000 die each year due to complications from unsafe abortions or pregnancy-related issues. Among these fatalities, sexual minority women including lesbian women, bisexual women, queer women, and trans-men face disproportionate risks due to double marginalization in society. These women are excluded from the Safe Termination of Pregnancy (STOP) guidelines and stigmatized under the Same-Sex Marriage Prohibition Act (SSMPA) 2014, causing them to experience systemic neglect when seeking safe abortion care. Despite being among the most vulnerable, their health needs remain overlooked by healthcare providers and mainstream CSOs.

Without urgent action, these preventable deaths will continue. Sexual minority women in Ogun state will continue to experience unwanted pregnancies, often linked to forced conversion therapy, rape, abuse, coercion, or limited access to contraception. Excluded from abortion policies, they will continue to be forced into unsafe alternatives, increasing their risk of life-threatening complications. Expanding the STOP guidelines to include ALL women without any discriminating factor would address this gap, ensuring they have access to safe, legal, and stigma-free healthcare. Without inclusion, these doubly marginalized groups will remain invisible in Ogun State’s healthcare system, and lives will continue to be lost unnecessarily.

Ogun State’s STOP guidelines present a critical opportunity to save lives and improve healthcare equity. With the STOP guidelines already being implemented, this is the time to push for inclusion before more lives are put at risk. TRAHI’s recent findings revealed that the exclusion of sexual minority women has already contributed to a disturbing trend of unsafe abortion practices among LBQ women and trans-men. Ensuring their inclusion now will not only reduce preventable deaths but also promote reproductive justice for marginalized groups.

📢 Sign the petition today to demand that the Ogun State Ministry of Health include sexual minority women in the STOP guidelines — because no one should be denied safe healthcare regardless of any deciding factor.