Center for Reproductive Rights

Nancy Northup, President and Chief Executive Officer

Being a SheDecides champion means ensuring that global leaders are united in our work to advance and protect the sexual and reproductive rights of women, girls, and all people around the world. It means ensuring that every person has the dignity and autonomy to make decisions about their own health and lives. At the Center for Reproductive Rights, we are clear-eyed about the challenges ahead, and are proud to face them head on in partnership with the SheDecides global community.

Catalina Martinez Coral

Vice President for Latin America and the Caribbean

Bodily autonomy is profoundly significant as it also acknowledges and upholds the rights of historically marginalised women and girls in their struggle for equality and representation. Recognising that autonomy over one's body is not just a matter of personal choice, it is a critical issue of social justice and empowerment. Bodily autonomy underscores the importance of inclusive policies and movements that honour diverse experiences and uphold the right of every individual to control their own body and destiny.

Salima Namusobya

Vice President for Africa

Bodily autonomy is a fundamental right, at the heart of equality, privacy, and dignity. We continuously empower individuals, particularly women and girls, to make decisions about their own bodies and reproductive health. This includes the choice of if, when, and how many children to have. Such autonomy allows women and girls to enjoy other human rights, promoting a life of freedom and equality.

Rebecca Brown

Vice President of Global Advocacy

Bodily autonomy is necessary for each one of us to be the decision-makers in our own lives. We rely on it to make decisions about whether to stay in school, where to work, whether to be or stay married, and whether, when and how to have a child. Bodily autonomy is fundamental to equality and dignity.

How we are working so SheDecides

The Center for Reproductive Rights works around the world to guarantee girls and all adolescents the full exercise of their sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR), including their rights to make informed decisions about their sexuality and reproduction and to access sexual and reproductive health services. Because of the Center’s work, millions of people worldwide live with stronger legal protections for their sexual and reproductive rights.

SHE SOARS: Expanding Out-of-school Adolescents’ Access to Sexual and Reproductive Health Care in Kenya, Uganda, and Zambia

With the support of the government of Canada and CARE, the Center for Reproductive Rights and other organisations are implementing a programme in Kenya, Uganda, and Zambia to improve adolescent sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR).

The “SHE SOARS” programme directly supports over 240,000 girls, including 200,000 out-of-school girls. Targeting urban and semi-urban informal settlements, rural settings, and refugee host communities, the project provides SRHR information, addresses gender-based inequalities, and improves services like access to contraception and menstrual health management.

The programme also provides training to girls' rights organisations to advocate for evidence-based and equitable health policies and services.

Ending Forced Pregnancy Testing and Expulsion of Girls in Tanzania

Pregnant girls and adolescent mothers in Tanzania now have a confirmed right to continue their education due to efforts by the Center for Reproductive Rights and the Legal and Human Rights Centre (LHRC).

In 2019, the Center and LHRC filed a case against Tanzania's policy of expelling pregnant schoolgirls and adolescent mothers with the African Committee of Experts on the Rights and Welfare of the Child (ACERWC).

In a wide-reaching victory, the Committee ruled that the practices violated girls' rights, constituting gender-based discrimination. ACERWC called on Tanzania to end the practices, re-admit expelled girls, and ensure access to services.

Watch a video on this process here.

Ensuring Access to Reproductive Health Services for Rohingya Refugee Women and Girls in Bangladesh

Working with national partners in Bangladesh, the Center for Reproductive Rights is leading a programme to improve reproductive health services and protect reproductive rights for Rohingya women and girls at Cox’s Bazar, one of the largest refugee settlements in the world.

Launched in January 2022, this initiative focuses on creating a participatory, rights-based accountability system to ensure access to sexual, reproductive, and maternal health services without discrimination. The program emphasises accountability, transparency, and participation to address rights violations and improve health outcomes, part of the Center’s ongoing work in humanitarian settings.

A Historic Victory for Abortion Rights in Colombia

The Center for Reproductive Rights and the Causa Justa coalition secured a ruling from Colombia’s Constitutional Court to decriminalise abortion up to 24 weeks of pregnancy, marking a milestone victory of the “Green Wave” movement.

The Center is currently executing a strategy combining litigation, advocacy and communications to advance the implementation of this ruling to ensure that women, girls, and all pregnant people throughout Colombia can access abortion.

The "Causa Justa” decision has contributed to transform the cultural conversation around abortion throughout the region and inspires advocates all around the world.

Securing the Right to Safe, Legal, and Affordable Abortion Services in Nepal

After a decade of work by the Center and our partners, the Supreme Court of Nepal ruled that the government must guarantee access to safe and affordable abortion.

The ruling came on behalf of Lakshmi, a Nepalese woman forced to continue a pregnancy that risked her health and financial security. The Center’s partner Forum for Women Law and Development and Center employees brought the case.

The 2009 ruling was the first time a court held a government responsible for failure to ensure affordable abortion. The Court ordered the government to create a comprehensive abortion law, guided by human rights principles.

Championing the Rights of Girls and Adolescents in Latin America

Across Latin America and the Caribbean, the Center for Reproductive Rights defends girls and adolescents’ access to sexual and reproductive health and rights through litigation, advocacy and strategic communications with a broad movement of organisations, activists, and girls.

The Center has won cases before the Inter-American Court and is currently litigating before the UN the “Niñas, No Madres” cases, on behalf of survivors of sexual violence denied access to abortion. These cases seek broader sexual and reproductive protections for all girls around the world.

About the Center for Reproductive Rights

The Center for Reproductive Rights is a global human rights organisation of lawyers and advocates who ensure reproductive rights are protected in law as fundamental human rights for the dignity, equality, health, and well-being of every person.

Since its founding in 1992, the Center’s game-changing litigation, legal policy, and advocacy work—combined with unparalleled expertise in constitutional, international, and comparative human rights law—has transformed how reproductive rights are understood by courts, governments, and human rights bodies.

Through its work across five continents, CRR has played a critical role in securing legal victories before national courts, United Nations Committees, and regional human rights bodies on reproductive rights issues including access to life-saving obstetrics care, contraception, maternal health, and safe abortion services, as well as the prevention of forced sterilisation and child marriage.

WHENSHE DECIDES