International Safe Abortion Day Date in the current year: September 28, 2024

In 1990, female activists from Latin America in the Caribbean launched the September 28 Campaign (Campaña 28 Septiembre), a day of action for decriminalization of abortion. In 2011, the initiative was supported by the Women’s Global Network for Reproductive Rights that declared September 28 as an international awareness day.

The campaign’s name was officially changed to International Safe Abortion Day in 2015. That year, national, regional and international NGOs and activists organized over 80 events and activities in 47 countries around the world. International Safe Abortion Day has been growing ever since.

According to the World Health Organization reports, about 22 million unsafe abortions are carried out every year worldwide and an estimated 47,000 women die annually from complications that result from unsafe practices for termination of pregnancy.

Failure to provide access to services for termination of an unplanned pregnancy and criminalization of abortion are considered a form of gender discrimination. Nevertheless, legislation that denies access to safe abortion affects about 40% of the world’s population. The main goal of International Safe Abortion Day is to raise public awareness of the importance of lifting abortion bans and to fight for women’s access to reproductive medicine around the world.