About

Exporting Abortion is a cross-border, collaborative investigation into unequal abortion access in Europe. Journalists from across the continent have investigated how thousands of women each year are forced to travel from one country to another to access abortions.

The project was initiated in the first quarter of 2024 and was published in April 2025, following a year of research. During this time, the team submitted over 100 Freedom of Information (FOI) requests, reviewed the laws, regulations, and protocols on abortion across European countries, and spoke with dozens of women who had to travel abroad for an abortion, as well as numerous experts on the matter.

Our team quantified and documented, for the first time, the number of women in Europe who have had to cross borders to exercise their right to an abortion, as well as identified the main routes taken between specific countries. Drawing primarily from official state statistics, the team has gathered, standardised, and made the data comparable, ensuring a comprehensive and accurate analysis of the situation. This was done amid a backdrop where many European countries withhold data and fail to be transparent.

Exporting Abortion was coordinated by Sergio Sangiao, Emilia G. Morales, and Nacho Calle, the investigative team from Público (Spain). The Journal Investigates (Ireland) was also part of the team from the outset. The findings were ultimately published by 11 media outlets across Europe. Partner media outlets include OKO.press (Poland), Expresso (Portugal), Denník N (Slovakia), Amphora Media (Malta), Page Not Found (Czech Republic), and Altaveu (Andorra). This investigation was developed with the support of Journalismfund Europe.

The journalists who participated in this investigation, in alphabetical order, are: Joana Ascensão (Portugal), Kristina Bohmer (Slovakia), Magdalena Chrzczonowicz (Poland), Mayya Chernobylskaya (Germany), Nacho Calle (Spain), Maria Delaney (Ireland), Joanna Demarco (Malta), Armelle Desmaison (France), Emilia G. Morales (Spain), Bru Noya (Andorra), Apolena Rychlíková (Czech Republic), Órla Ryan (Ireland), Sergio Sangiao (Spain) and Margot Smolenaars (Netherlands).