African society has raised all its members to believe that abortion is murder and whoever commits it should be put behind bars. The law enforcers and religious leaders have also played a great part in stressing that belief hence most African governments have been adamant in re-enforcing these beliefs. However, with globalisation and other factors which have helped bring forth new attitudes and introduction of new technologies, conversations around abortion have shifted. Changing realities and influence of the alternative voices in the abortion discourse have led to some African governments such as Kenya and South Africa to move beyond this moral and cultural narrative and legalise abortion.

In the case of Zimbabwe, the Termination of Pregnancy Act of 1977, Chapter 15:10 provides for abortion to be legal only under the following conditions- when the foetus carried poses some serious health problems to the mother or even death, when the mother is mentally handicapped, when the baby to be born has some serious defects or serious health conditions and when the pregnancy is as result of incest. Efforts have been made to amend the Act, however, the Constitution that came into force in 2013 provides that the Act of Parliament must protect the lives of unborn children, and that Act must provide that pregnancy may be terminated only in accordance with that law. The question at hand now is, are these the only circumstances which force women to seek abortion?

Declining economic situations in most African countries have led to a boom in the sex work industry and most families have survived on sex work income for ages. Nonetheless, consequences that comes with `the job` have not yet been given attention because the act is shunned already. Sex workers who attended Katswe Sistahood`s dialogue on commemorating the International Safe Abortion Day highlighted how some clients tear condoms during sex, or how they can remove the condom during sex which leaves them at high risk of getting an unplanned pregnancy. Access to contraceptives also appears to be a challenge as most sex workers are stigmatized because of the nature of their job. In the event that the sex worker gets pregnant then they will seek termination of pregnancy because in most cases they will not even know who impregnated them and will not be able to financially sustain a new baby.

Apart from sex workers, students in universities have also highlighted the need for the abortion services as when preventing pregnancy fails. Students who attended the dialogue explained the fear of stigma and discrimination associated with collecting contraceptives from the school clinic hence, if one gets pregnant, they would rather seek abortion services. The trauma that one must go through looking for methods to get rid of the baby will affect most girls psychologically and even performance at school.

Population Services International (2014) states that 78% of university students who fell pregnant resorted to abortion, a figure higher than the previous year`s 48%. It is estimated that 70 000 illegal abortions are performed each year. Where abortion fails some young women resort to baby dumping or infanticide. A case in point is that of a girl from Chinhoyi University of Technology who was reported to have flushed her newly born baby down the toilet.

Given the figures and circumstances, there seems to be a need to revisit the laws on abortion and at least grant women their basic health right. Advocates argue that the issue of abortion has become a matter of public health rather than legality. While it is debatable whether to approach this from a pro-life or pro-choice, perspective, illegal abortions are still being committed and a significant number of young girls are losing their lives in the process hence the need to take a step.