Author: Michael Gwarisa

Editor for HealthTimes, Zimbabwe's leading online health news publication

Divorced and Single Persons Constitute Largest Number Of People Who Inject Drugs In Zimbabwe

Michael Gwarisa

LONELINESS and mental health challenges associated with being single and not having a partner has led to an increase in drug and substance abuse among single and divorced persons in Zimbabwe, a report has gathered. By Michael Gwarisa According to 2022 data, Zimbabwe’s divorce rate was estimated to be at least 44.2 percent. However, as a coping strategy and to numb the pain associated with breakups, divorced and single people seem to have found solace in illicit drug and substance use. A Final Report on Zimbabwe situational analysis of drug…

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Mashonaland Central Has Highest Number of Girls Married Before the Age of 15

Michael Gwarisa

A preliminary 2022 Census Report on Fertility has shown that the prevalence of teen pregnancies was highest in Mashonaland Central province, leading to spike in early child marriages in the province. By Michael Gwarisa According to the Zimbabwe Statistical Agency 2022 report, the proportion of women age 20-24 years who were married before the age of 15 years by province was  2.2 percent for Mashonaland Central province, 1.7 percent for Manicaland province and 0.3 percent for Matabeleland South province. The province also recorded the highest number for women age 20-24…

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Zimbabwe In Top 10 African Countries With Highest Prevalence Of Second Hand Tobacco Smoking

Michael Gwarisa

WHILE smoking of combustible tobacco products is on the decline in other parts of the world, countries in the East and Southern Africa region continue to record high levels of second hand smoking (SHS). By Michael Gwarisa This is despite documented evidence that exposure to secondhand tobacco smoke (SHS) was one of the leading risk factors for deaths globally in 2019, accounting for approximately 1.3 million deaths and contributing to 37 million Disability-Adjusted life years (DALYs), with 11.2 percent of the burden in children under the age of 5 years.…

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‘It’s been 20 Years of Saving Zimbabwean Lives’: PEPFAR’s Carey Speaks on 20 years Anniversary

Michael Gwarisa

THE year 2023, January 28 to be precise, marked exactly 20 years since American President George W. Bush announced the creation of the U.S. President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (#PEPFAR) during his State of the Union address.  The new initiative included the goal of providing HIV treatment to two million people living with HIV over five years with a budget of USD$15 billion dollars.  This was the birth of PEPFAR, now the largest commitment by any nation to address a single disease. The new initiative included the goal of…

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SET A THIEF TO CATCH A THIEF: How AWET Health interventions have reduced home deliveries Among Apostolic Women and Girls in Shurugwi

Michael Gwarisa

Caroline Ngosha (23), from Shurugwi is expecting her third child in a few months’ time. In both her previous pregnancies, she delivered her children at home in line with the dictates of her religion, a white garment apostolic sect. Some apostolic sects in Zimbabwe do not allow their followers to use family planning or contraception methods. Neither do they sanction female followers to register with the Anti Natal Clinic (ANC), later on deliver in a health institution. By Michael Gwarisa in Shurugwi She remembers vividly how life threatening giving birth…

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Gweru Sex Workers Pose as MSU Students To Get Sex Clients As Competition Gets Tough

Michael Gwarisa

IN a few weeks’ time, the Midlands State University (MSU) will resume classes, and sex workers in Gweru are already fretting over the period as they fear finding themselves in the old profession’s relegation zone. Amongst sex clients, sleeping with a University student is a huge flex and status symbol. By Michael Gwarisa recently in the Midlands Province  This is also the trend in Zvishavane where the MSU has also established a campus. A few years ago, an MSU official told a parliamentary portfolio committee that Sex Workers from Zvishavane…

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KidzCan Zimbabwe Joins St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital Global Alliance

Michael Gwarisa

IN a move that is set to open international networking and support, educational opportunities and the inspiration of a globally shared mission –finding cures and saving children, everywhere, KidzCan Zimbabwe has join the St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital Global Alliance. By Staff Reporter Making the announcement, Daniel Mckenzie KidzCan Zimbabwe Executive Director said the recent development funds them joining more than 180 esteemed members from more than 68 countries around the world. Being voted into the Global Alliance is an honor. Global foundation partners must be assessed, recommended and sponsored…

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Eastern and Southern Africa Commission on Drugs

Michael Gwarisa

The Eastern and Southern Africa Commission on Drugs (ESACD), has been formally today (11/02/23) in Cape Town South Africa. By Michael Gwarisa The ESCAD is a high-level regional advocacy mechanism designed to find new ways of addressing a growing drug epidemic in the region that is affecting cities, towns and villages in every country and fueling a worsening health crisis. The ESACD currently comprises four commissioners’ including President Joaquim Chissano, former President of Mozambique, Kgalema Motlanthe, former President of South Africa, Cassam Uteem, former President of Mauritius and  Professor Quarraisha…

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Zimbabwe has highest Adolescents Suicide Ideation rate in Sub-Saharan Africa

Michael Gwarisa

DATA collected during a study on Suicide Ideation of Adolescents in Sub-Saharan Africa conducted by Regional Psychosocial Support Initiatives (REPSSI) shows that Zimbabwe has the highest rates of adolescents who think of committing suicide compared to other countries in the Sub-Saharan region. By Michael Gwarisa Suicidal ideation is when one thinks about killing him/herself. According to the report, a number of variables were associated with an increased risk for suicide ideation in the study. These include being older, being female, not being in school, being orphaned, not having a tap…

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Bandits Kill MSF Medical Staff In Burkina Faso

Michael Gwarisa

ARMED men yesterday morning (8/2/23) shot and killed two Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) medical staff in the Boucle du Mouhoun region, in northwestern Burkina Faso. By Michael Gwarisa The now deceased were on board an MSF vehicle, clearly identified as such, carrying a medical team of four on the road between Dédougou and Touga. The other two managed to escape the attack.The two victims, both from Burkina Faso, had been employed by MSF as a driver, since July 2021, and a logistics supervisor, since June 2020. They were 39 and…

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