Challenges and prospects of litigating sexual and reproductive health and rights of women in Nigeria : lessons from comparative foreign jurisprudence

Abstract

Available statistics revealed vulnerable and fragile conditions for women in Africa, including Nigeria. This is due to the persistent violation of their sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR), maternal heath rights, choice of spouse and right to determine whether or not to have children and the numbers of children to have, access to contraceptives, etc. These rights are violated due to cultural norms, medical negligence, lack of access to social and economic resources, etc. If this condition is left to fester, Nigerian women may never attain their full potential and capabilities to develop because of the links that exist between sexual and reproductive health and rights and equality, empowerment, economic growth and development. There is, therefore, a need to strengthen this fragile condition through the effective implementation and enforcement of international, regional and national laws relating to SRHR. Rights litigation strategy is an acknowledged tool of empowerment and transformation in this regard. Consequently, this article examines SRHR of women in Nigeria, highlighting the challenges with litigating cases involving SRHR. Also, the article considers the prospects for litigation through a comparative study of selected jurisdictions in order to explore how they have engaged with similar situations and challenges of litigating SRHR and to identify lessons for Nigerian courts.