Rethinking a Legal Framework for Assisted Reproductive Technology

Assisted reproductive technology is the various medical procedures and techniques used to assist individuals and couples achieve pregnancy especially when the conventional means of procreation fails. Assisted reproductive technology, a very important breakthrough in reproductive medicine, is one of the treatment modalities for infertility and reproductive difficulties, through which couples conceive by means other than sexual intercourse. Nevertheless, as commendable as this technology is, it raises a number of ethical, legal, social, cultural and religious issues. Although, there are existing legal frameworks regulating reproductive health in Nigeria such as National Health Act, 2004, these laws do not envisage the issue of assisted reproductive technology and the emerging trends therein. It is against this backdrop that this paper appraised the existing legal and institutional framework regulating reproductive health in Nigerian for the purpose of making a case for the enactment of new laws or expansion of existing laws to accommodate assisted reproductive technology while taking cognizance of the cultural, religious, and social peculiarities of Nigeria. The paper finds that there are no specific laws regulating the conduct of assisted reproduction in Nigeria. It is the further findings of this paper that despite the absence of these direct laws; the practice of assisted reproduction goes on in Nigeria. The result is that both couples and donors remain unprotected. To address this seeming loophole, the paper recommended among other things, the expansion of the reproductive health laws or enactment of laws in Nigeria to accommodate assisted reproductive technology, this way, couples, donors and even medical practitioners will be better protected and confident in the use of assisted reproductive technology.

本研究探讨了不孕不育的定义、分类及其在社会文化背景下的影响，特别是在重视生育的传统社会中所引发的健康与社会挑战。研究关注不孕不育的主要风险因素，包括女性与男性的生理原因及其在医疗体系中的表现，尤其是男性不孕在某些文化中被视为禁忌而鲜少公开讨论的现象。此外，研究关注不孕夫妇在求医过程中采用的多元化路径，从灵性疗法、传统医术到生育辅助技术（ART），以及近年来非法“婴儿工厂”现象的兴起，揭示不孕不育问题所引发的伦理、法律、宗教与社会议题。

本研究采用法律分析方法，围绕尼日利亚现有的生殖健康法律与辅助生殖技术（ART）的法律空白进行评估。通过对《国家健康法案》（2004）等相关法律框架的审视，研究探讨这些法律如何未能涵盖辅助生殖技术及其衍生问题，特别是在伦理、法律、社会、文化和宗教层面的挑战。研究分析了辅助生殖技术在法律缺失情况下的实践现状，揭示了在法律保护缺位的背景下，受助夫妇、捐赠者及医疗从业者所面临的法律风险。基于此，研究提出了完善现有法律或制定专门法律以规范辅助生殖技术的建议，旨在为相关群体提供更全面的法律保护与操作规范。

本研究发现，辅助生殖技术（ART）作为生殖医学的一项创新，已在过去一个世纪中得到了广泛应用，给渴望孩子的个体和夫妇带来了巨大的希望与安慰。自1989年首次成功分娩以来，ART在尼日利亚帮助了许多夫妇和个人。然而，随着ART的广泛应用，社会面临着一系列伦理、法律、文化上的挑战。研究指出，尼日利亚在使用ART时存在多个问题，包括财务可及性、治疗费用、许可与规范缺失、未使用和过剩胚胎的处置、家庭观念的再定义、合法性、继承权、宗教信仰等。这些问题亟待解决，特别是缺乏专门法律框架以规范ART的实践。因此，研究建议尼日利亚应制定具有文化敏感性的综合法律框架，涵盖ART相关问题，确保不与现有法律相冲突，并设立监管机构对生育诊所和代孕机构进行监督。