(Seychelles News Agency) - The number of legal abortions recorded in Seychelles has remained fairly constant between 400 to 500 every year from 2008 until 2023, according to records from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS). 

Meanwhile, for the same period the average number of live births annually for the same period has remained constant at around 1500.

In 2023, 58 teenagers had an abortion at the Seychelles Hospital. Out of a total of 405 abortions, 53 were 15-19 years old while five were between 10 to 14 years old. This represents about 13 percent of the total recorded abortions for the year.

From those ages 20 up to 39 years, there were 317 cases recorded representing a majority at 78 percent. There was also a group of 30 women from the ages of 40 up to 49 who also had abortions in 2023 and this represents about 7 percent of the total number.

These figures do not include the number of illegal and backstreet abortions, which are believed to be numerous and not recorded, unless the mother experiences an infection and needs further health assistance. Some of these women use strong medications for other illnesses to induce abortions, and therefore, statistics on these practices are not publicly available.

In Seychelles, women can have an abortion under the Termination of Pregnancy Act of 1994. According to the Act, a pregnancy may only be terminated under section 3 or section 4 before the end of the 12 weeks of pregnancy, unless in the opinion of the director of Health Services, there are exceptional grounds for later termination.

According to the Act, a gynaecologist may terminate a pregnancy if it involves risk to the life of the pregnant woman or a risk of injury to the physical or mental health of the pregnant woman.  

It can also be done if there is a substantial risk that if the child were born it would suffer from such physical or mental abnormalities as to be seriously handicapped.

Additionally, if a judge determines that the pregnancy is the result of rape, incest, or defilement; or that the pregnant woman is unfit to have the care of a child because she is mentally retarded or deficient.

However, there are also other reasons that women are choosing the termination of pregnancy.

A member of the Termination of Pregnancy Board and the specialist consultant of the Gynecology and Obstetrics Department at the Seychelles Hospital, Dr Robert Michel, said, "Something that stands out here in Seychelles is the fact that a lot of these mothers do not want the pregnancy because they don't have a house or they are not financially stable. There are also a lot of requests where they list social issues linked to failed relationships or infidelity. They all have a reason for wanting a termination."

He said that the figures clearly show that there is a need for more sexual education given that the majority of abortion cases are above the age of 20.

"The link between the school and the Ministry of Health is there, but it needs to be re-enforced and more emphasis should be placed on it. Contraceptives are free and there are 10 different forms. These numbers should not be the case if contraceptives were being used correctly and consistently," said Michel.

He said that the statistics for cervical screenings, known as Pap smears, also indicate a need for more sexual reproductive education or responsibility and that this is a necessary procedure as it can also help detect cervical cancer.

"Contraceptives work in tandem with Pap smears. Both are provided by Family Planning. If a woman was regularly doing her Pap smears, she would have been taking her contraceptives because the Family Planning nurse would have inquired about it. If the Family Planning services available in the country were used appropriately as they were, the intended two statistics would go down; cervical cancer and the number of abortion cases," said Michel.

Meanwhile, the founder of the 'Elles Foundation, practising midwife Lorea Rassool, said they work mainly with to support pregnant teenagers who end up pregnant. The foundation also advocates for sexual and reproductive health in schools.

In 2023, out of 1553 live births, 191 babies were born to teenage mothers with 15 aged less than 15 years old and 176 between 15 – 19 years old. This represents about 12.29 percent of the total live births in Seychelles. Out of the 191 births, 29 of these mothers gave birth to their second child, of which 1 was below the age of 15.

"One of the key concerns at present is the lacuna within the current laws of Seychelles which allows a 15-year-old to freely consent to sexual relations but maintains that they require parental consent to be able to access effective methods of contraception such as the pill. This is a key area that requires reform alongside further education," she told SNA.

Rassool emphasized the importance of addressing teenage pregnancy especially to mitigate the effects that it has on society as a whole.

"It has an economic impact, it has an impact on the level of education, it has an impact socially, it has an impact on the health system, a psychological impact, it underlines the terrible situation of abuse and many other social issues we have. [...] It is an issue that affects everyone in Seychelles," she added.

Rassool said that education is also an important factor, describing it as one of their main missions to educate the youth, the adults and the community as a whole.

"I find it heartbreaking when in a workshop in a school students aged 14 will explain to me what is an abortion and sometimes how it happens illegally instead of being able to explain to me how to take a contraceptive pill. This is really showing how bad the situation is," she said.

Rassool highlighted the abuse that is happening in Seychelles, especially to young girls who sometimes do not know better.

"We have made anonymous questionnaires in the past where we would ask teenagers if they have received sexual education at school and if they feel like it was sufficient. Many said they did not have classes for a very long period of time and only a few will say the content was sufficient. Most of the time teenagers learn about sexuality with children the same age or with adults who are way older than them and who are abusing them. How can a child explain sex and all its risks to a peer, and how will an abuser tell his victims that what he is doing is wrong?" she said.

Rassool said there is not enough sexual education and there is a need to review what is being taught in school.

"This subject cannot be taboo. We all know that abuse happens every day, that children have their first sexual intercourse very early, that they are often abused without knowing it, that unplanned and unwanted pregnancy is a big problem in our country and that many backstreet abortions happen daily putting the youth and the women in general at risks," she explained.

Additionally, Rassool also noted that apart from pregnancies, these statistics also portray a worrying trend, especially for sexually transmitted diseases (STDs).

"Most of these teenage pregnancies, if not all, are unplanned and happen because the kids did not use any contraceptives but also did not use condoms, so many people are having sexually transmitted diseases. Many people will find out they have STDs during pregnancy because it's the only time they are being tested! This also needs to improve and we need to talk about it more and more and inform the general public of all the risks, consequences but also statistics," she said.