A total of 1,774 abortions on request were performed in Croatia in 2021, while the total number of abortions over the past 15 years has dropped by 25%, the Croatian Public Health Institute (HZJZ) said in a report for 2021.

In comparison, in 2006, 10,224 abortions were performed, while in 2021 that number was 7,712.

The total number of abortions includes abortions performed on the basis of various medical indications, including miscarriages, previously established malformations of the fetus and other pathological conditions.

Of the 7,712 abortions performed last year, 1,774 were performed on request by women, the report says, noting that in 84.3% of those cases contraception had not been used.

Pregnancies that occur despite the use of contraception happen on average in only 2-3% of unwanted pregnancies.

The source of the data are exclusively hospitals because under medical regulations, abortions can only be performed in inpatient medical facilities.

The largest share or 48.3% of terminated pregnancies are in the category “Other abnormal products of conception”, followed by 34.6% of “Legally induced abortions”, while miscarriages account for some 17.1% of all pregnancy terminations.

According to Eurostat data, Croatia has a lower rate of legally induced abortions per 1,000 newborns than neighbouring countries and the EU average, even though a general trend of declining abortion rates has been evident in most European countries.

The rate of reported abortions in young women (under 20) in Croatia is significantly lower than in most neighbouring countries and in the EU.

The highest abortion rates (in relation to the total population) have been reported in Karlovac and Medjimurje counties, and the lowest in Split-Dalmatia and Brod-Posavina counties.

The largest number of legally induced abortions, that is, abortions on request, was performed last year at the KBC Rijeka hospital (327), followed by Zagreb’s KB Merkur hospital (284), and the general hospitals in Pula (228) and Karlovac (262).

Under the law, a woman can have a legal abortion in a hospital a maximum ten weeks into her pregnancy without having to seek permission by the competent commission, which was the case in 88% of the abortions, and there were no reports of fatal outcomes.

Most of the women who opt for abortion are aged 30-39 (44.8%), followed by 20-year-old women (38.9%).

Almost one-third of women who opted for abortion were married and already had two children.

In 2021, 44 abortions were performed in underage girls, and 94 in young adult women under 20.

The data presented are only those collected in medical institutions, which leaves open the question of the so-called grey abortion zone.