Nyale Institute for Sexual and Reproductive Health Governance (Nyale Institute) and its youth advocates achieved a stunning success in tackling the gap between law and practice around safe abortion in Malawi with an AmplifyChange Pamoja Opportunity Grant.
Like many countries, although Malawi was committed to protecting sexual and reproductive health and rights in its constitution, which includes a Bill of Rights and national laws, and through international pledges (ICPD), communities struggled to navigate complex legal frameworks around contraception, bodily autonomy, and most of all, access to safe abortion. Malawi’s law permits abortion only in cases to save the life of the pregnant person, with no explicit exceptions for rape, incest, or severe foetal anomaly. In 2015 alone, an estimated 140,000 sought unsafe abortions outside of the legal framework, more than half suffering complications needing hospital care. Years of attempts at legislative reform had failed to bring concrete change, including an unsuccessful proposed Termination of Pregnancy (ToP) Bill and even a High Court ruling on abortion in 2021, which did not tackle the challenge the applicant sought to address.
Nyale Institute recognised the need for a new strategy. Rather than continuing to push for law reform, they decided to work with what already existed: the Gender Equality Act. The language of this legislation made it possible to argue for the most expansive, rights-affirming reading of Malawi’s abortion laws. Grounding legal arguments in an enabling law helped circumvent the religious and cultural opposition that often dominated public debates.
The Nyale Institute set out to empower young people as advocates, engaging and educating communities about the law, its interpretation and to raise understanding of SRHR in general. Nyale Institute translated complex legal concepts into a simplified SRHR Advocacy Manual, available in English and Chichewa, and trained 30 young representatives in sessions in Chikwawa and Chiladzulu to become peer champions.
Armed with the manual, they led discussions, training, and community dialogues that opened new conversations on rights, stigma, and access to services. Across Blantyre, Chikwawa, and Chiladzulu, a youth-led SRHR advocacy network took shape, mobilising leaders and peers while expanding access to accurate information and services. By the end of the project, young leaders had reached nearly 2,000 people through 89 community engagements, catalysing a powerful shift in community understanding.
As the project unfolded, a concurrent landmark High Court judgment provided a clear validation of their approach. A 13-year-old girl, AC, who had been raped was denied an abortion because the clinician thought it was illegal to provide the service.
With Nyale Institute’s support, she took the matter to the High Court in the case of AC (a minor) vs Ministry of Health and Others, the judgment of which was handed down in October 2025.The High Court of Malawi confirmed that minors who become pregnant through sexual violence have an automatic right to access abortion under the Gender Equality Act. The Court stated that forcing a child to carry such a pregnancy is “harsh and inhumane” and that when assessing whether a pregnancy is a risk to the life of the pregnant woman, the health provider should consider their mental as well as physical health.
As a result, the Court ordered the Ministry of Health to update the guidelines on abortion related care within 180 days to clearly state that a child survivor of rape should not be denied access to safe abortion. It also ordered the Ministry of Health to ensure that health providers are trained to provide both information and the services to clients according to the Gender Equality Act. Nyale Institute, with other members of the Coalition for the Prevention of Unsafe Abortion (COPUA), is now supporting implementation of the court orders.
In a context where misinformation and fear had long overshadowed legal rights, this project narrowed the divide between law and lived experience. It also showed that when young people are equipped with clear, actionable knowledge, they can reshape community attitudes, challenge stigma, and strengthen the foundations of SRHR advocacy for the next generation.
