The UNDP-UNFPA-UNICEF-WHO-World Bank Special Programme of Research, Development and Research Training in Human Reproduction (HRP) and the World Health Organization (WHO) gratefully acknowledges the contributions of many individuals and organizations to the development of this consolidated guideline.

WHO extends sincere thanks to the chair and members of the Guideline Development Group (GDG): Laura Castleman (Chair) and Fauzia Akhter Huda, Karla Berdichevsky, Marge Berer, Michalina Drejza, Joanna Erdman, Kristina Gemzell Danielsson, Caitlin Gerdts, Laura Gil, Selma Hajri, Guyo Jaldesa, Godfrey Kangaude, Vinoj Manning, Hiromi Obara, Alongkone Phengsavanh, Akila Radhakrishnan, Michelle Remme and Chi Chi Undie; and also the human rights adviser for the GDG meeting and all three Evidence and Recommendation Review Group (ERRG) meetings: Christina Zampas. Sincere thanks also to the following additional ERRG members: Nana Yaa Appiah, Suchitra Dalvie, Jemima Araba Dennis-Antwi, Surendra Dhital, Daniel Maceira, Sybil Nkeiru, Karan Parikh, Dhammika Perera, Judiac Ranape, Kitihoun Serge and Karthik Srinivasan; and to the following human rights advisers who contributed to the ERRG on law and policy: Abhijit Das, Sara Hossain, Karima Khalil, Primah Kwagala, Monica Arango Olaya and Xian Warner. Thanks are also due to the members of the External Review Group: Safia Ahsan, Traci Baird, Sharon Cameron, Jane Harries, Thoai Ngo, Yvette Raphael, Mariana Romero, Rachel Simon-Kumar and Beverly Winikoff. Institutional affiliations for these and other contributors are provided in Annex 1 of this guideline.

Special thanks are due to the Evidence Synthesis Teams, who prepared the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation (GRADE) systematic reviews, especially the lead researchers: Alison Edelman, Taylor King, Makalapua Motu’apuaka, Robyn Paynter, Maria Rodriguez (Clinical services domain); Nicholas Henschke, Yanina Sguassero and Gemma Villanueva (Service delivery domain); Scott Burris, Amanda Cleeve, Fiona de Londras and Maria Rodriguez (Law and policy domain). Special thanks also to the guideline methodologists, Jeppe Schroll (Clinical services domain); Nicholas Henschke, Yanina Sguassero and Gemma Villanueva (Service delivery domain), and Maria Rodriguez (Law and policy domain). We also thank the team from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, led by Veronique Filippi, for their work on monitoring and evaluation issues related to quality abortion care. We thank the “Economics of abortion” review team, led by Ernestina Coast, Samantha Lattof, Brittany Moore and Yana Rodgers, for their collaboration and contributions to the guideline. We also extend our thanks to the International Youth Alliance for Family Planning (IYAFP) for their close collaboration and contributions from their Youth Taskforce members to the guideline development process.

We acknowledge the following GDG meeting observers including representatives from United Nations agencies: Patricia Lohr (British Pregnancy Advisory Service, and member of the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists [RCOG] Making Abortion Safe Programme Advisory Group), Jaydeep Tank (Federation of Obstetrics and Gynaecological Societies of India and International Federation of Obstetrics and Gynaecology [FIGO] Working Group for safe abortion, India), Francelle Toedtli (United Nations Population Fund, USA), Ann Yates (International Confederation of Midwives, the Netherlands); and the following individual reviewers from implementing organizations who provided feedback on the draft guidelines: Bethan Cobley (MSI Reproductive Choices, United Kingdom), Rasha Dabash (Ipas, USA), Eva Lathrop (Population Services International, USA), Steve Luboya (Pathfinder, USA) and Rebecca Wilkins (International Planned Parenthood Federation, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland).

The following WHO staff members contributed as members of the WHO Guideline Steering Group, which managed the guideline development process (all from WHO’s Department of Sexual and Reproductive Health and Research [SRH], Prevention of Unsafe Abortion [PUA] Unit): Mekdes Daba Feyssa (provided support for the clinical services domain and overall guideline development process), Bela Ganatra (PUA Unit head, co-lead coordinator for the service delivery domain), Heidi Johnston (provided support for the service delivery domain, especially monitoring and evaluation work), Caron Kim (responsible technical officer, lead coordinator for the clinical services domain and co-lead for the service delivery domain, and overall coordinator for the guideline development process), Antonella Lavelanet (lead coordinator for the law and policy domain and human rights). During initial stages of guideline planning, Steering Group members also included Roopan Gill and Lemi Tolu (formerly with the PUA Unit) and Rajat Khosla (formerly with the Office of the SRH Department’s Director).

Writing was provided by Fiona de Londras, Bela Ganatra, Heidi Johnston, Caron Kim, Antonella Lavelanet, Jane Patten and Maria Rodriguez. WHO administrative support was provided by Claire Garabedian and Hannah Hatch, and communications support was provided by Sarah Kessler and Elizabeth Noble, all from the SRH Department, with additional communications support from Laura Keenan and Sarah Russell of the WHO Director of Communications Office and from Helen Palmer of Weber Shandwick. We are grateful to the following additional WHO headquarters staff and consultants, who provided input at various stages during the development of the guideline: Laurence Codjia, Fahdi Dkhimi, Carolin Ekman, Veloshnee Govender, Lisa Hedman, Laurence Laeser, Bruno Meessen, Ulrika Rehnström Loi, Marta Schaaf, Patricia Titulaer; and also colleagues from WHO regional offices: Chilanga Asmani, Ibadat Dhillon, Rodolfo Gómez Ponce de León and Nilmini Hemachandra. Review and comments were kindly provided by Ian Askew, Director of the SRH Department.

Special acknowledgement to the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) for their review of the final draft of the guideline, in particular on the aspects relevant to international human rights standards and the integration of a human rights-based approach.

Special thanks to the WHO Guidelines Review Committee (GRC) and in particular to the WHO GRC Secretariat, Rebekah Thomas-Bosco, Marion Blacker and Maria Pura Solon, for their valuable feedback at every stage of the guideline development process.

Editing and proofreading was provided by Jane Patten of Green Ink, United Kingdom, and design and layout was provided by Iavor Ivanov of Little Unicorns.

Funding for the development of the guideline was provided by HRP, a cosponsored programme executed by the WHO.