Is abortion legal in Nigeria?
Illegal (with exceptions)
Abortion is prohibited except to save the pregnant person's life.
Nigeria is one of 49 countries classified “Illegal (with exceptions)” for abortion — 22% of the 220 with data.
Source
- Taken from
- Wikipedia: Abortion law
- Last checked
- 15 September 2026
- How it was classified
- Read directly from the source’s own table, without interpretation.
Nearby countries
- Cameroon
- Legal (limited) Abortion is permitted on limited grounds such as a risk to health.
- Niger
- Legal (limited) Abortion is permitted on limited grounds such as a risk to health.
- Benin
- Legal (broad reasons) Abortion is permitted on broad grounds including economic or social reasons.
- Togo
- Legal (limited) Abortion is permitted on limited grounds such as a risk to health.
- Equatorial Guinea
- Legal (limited) Abortion is permitted on limited grounds such as a risk to health.
- Ghana
- Legal (limited) Abortion is permitted on limited grounds such as a risk to health.
Other laws in Nigeria
- Suicide Laws
- Criminal offense
- FGM Laws
- Varies by region
- Surrogacy
- Unregulated
A visual reference compiled from Wikipedia’s law-by-country articles, not legal advice. Laws change and summaries simplify — check a primary source before relying on anything here.