FEMINIST DIPLOMACY – INTERNATIONAL SAFE ABORTION DAY

STATEMENT

BY THE MINISTRY FOR EUROPE AND FOREIGN AFFAIRS SPOKESPERSON

FEMINIST DIPLOMACY – INTERNATIONAL SAFE ABORTION DAY

28 September 2026

On International Safe Abortion Day, 28 September, France reaffirms its unfailing commitment to women and girls having access to voluntary termination of pregnancy.

France was the first country to enshrine in its constitution the freedom to resort to voluntary termination of pregnancy, in March 2024. This step forward resulted from collective efforts to give the highest level of protection to women’s and girls’ rights to have complete freedom over their bodies.

The right to abortion must be exercised under satisfactory conditions as regards safety, respect and dignity. Restricting or prohibiting access to safe abortion does not reduce the number of abortions, it forces people to carry them out under conditions that endanger their health or even their lives.

In an international context marked by crises and the challenging of women’s and girls’ rights, France continues tirelessly to defend the right to freedom over one’s body and sexual and reproductive rights and health, a cornerstone of its feminist diplomacy.

Among other things, it supports the Supplies Partnership of the UN Population Fund (UNFPA), the world’s leading supplier of modern contraceptives. It is committed to promoting reproductive, maternal, neonatal, child and adolescent health in Central and West Africa through the Muskoka Fund, contributing to a 62% increase in family planning service coverage and a 78% increase in access to modern contraceptive methods. It supports the Organization for Safe Abortion Dialogue centre (ODAS Centre), which is mobilized in 17 Francophone African countries to promote access to safe abortion via access to reliable information.

France calls for continued efforts to guarantee the effective realization of the right to safe abortion, which is essential for the health, lives and freedom of women, and for the full realization of gender equality.

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