Category: REPRODUCTIVE

Protecting adolescents from unplanned pregnancies through access to comprehensive SRHR services

Healthtimes

By Dr Mildred T. Mushunje Adolescents’ sexual and reproductive health matters, and their lives matter!! Adolescents and young people constitute the bulge of population in the Sub-Saharan region, Zimbabwe in particular. An adolescent is any persons aged between 10 and 19 years. Very young adolescents are defined as those aged between 10 and 14 years and older adolescents as those aged between 15 and 19 years[1].  Investing in their good health and well-being increases their chances for better and more productive adult lives (SRHR Africa Trust, SAT, 2021[2]) yet they…

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Time To Put Back Teenage Pregnancy, Abortion On The Political Agenda

Healthtimes

By Edinah Masiyiwa As we commemorate both the International Safe Abortion Day on the 28th  September and World Contraception Day on the 26th of September, we should be sure to focus on the problem of early unintended pregnancies among girls ages 10 to 14 years. A few weeks ago, news of these early pregnancies was featured in different media of Zimbabwe thanks to a new survey conducted on the topic which revealed that the adolescent 10 to 19 years pregnancy rate is at 23%.. A United Nations Populations Fund  report…

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Zimbabwe commemorates World Contraception Day with milestone achievement

Michael Gwarisa

Zimbabwe has become one of the first countries in the East and Southern Africa Region to qualify for Match Funding through the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) Supplies Partnership after procuring contraceptives worth $1,5 million United States Dollars from domestic resources. This is a key achievement for the country’s efforts to support access to quality assured reproductive health and quality family planning commodities. The UNFPA Supplies Partnership 2021–2030 represents a new decade of commitment to advancing family planning and maternal health and accelerating progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals. Launched…

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The Role of Medical Professional Societies in Informing Communities on Maternal Health, Post-Abortion Care, and Abortion Laws Reform in Zimbabwe

Healthtimes

By Memory Pamella Kadau Maternal health, post-abortion care (PAC), and abortion laws reform are critical issues that require comprehensive and accurate information dissemination to communities. In Zimbabwe, medical professional societies are crucial in informing and educating the public about these topics. In 2022, the World Health Organisation (WHO) introduced new guidelines on abortion to help countries deliver lifesaving care. This article explores the significant role of medical professional associations in Zimbabwe in promoting maternal health, providing post-abortion care, and advocating for abortion laws reform.  Further, it proposes how medical professional…

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ZAOGA’s Pastor Gandawa Speaks On Four Decades Journey With Infertility

Healthtimes

The general assumption is that men and women of the cloth are immune to certain life’s challenges and upheavals. Well, that is not the case. No one is immune to problems, especially health problems  such as infertility. Infertility is not a respecter of men and can affect anyone at any given time regardless of one’s social status, race, culture or creed. By Nthokozo Gudu Since the biblical old testament days, women  with infertility or those who failed to bear children were stigmatized against and labelled barren and society looked down…

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Zimbabwe Won’t Meet 2030 ENAP Target Of Reducing Stillbirths To Below 12 Per 1000-Report

Michael Gwarisa

Zimbabwe is among the Seven countries in the SADC region that might fail to meet the Every New-born Action Plan Targets (ENAP) target of reducing the prevalence of stillbirths to less than 12 per 1,000 births. By Michael Gwarisa According to a Report of the UN Inter-agency Group for Child Mortality Estimation, titled A Neglected Tragedy The Global Burden of Stillbirth, about half of all stillbirths occur in six countries namely India, Pakistan, Ethiopia, Nigeria, China, Pakistan, and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and with current trends, more than…

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Young women at high risk of STIs in Zimbabwe – Study

Healthtimes

By Paul Sixpence ONE in four young women in Zimbabwe is likely to be infected with a sexually transmitted infection (STI) – with odds higher in young women living with HIV, the STICH study has revealed. The STICH study was conducted in Bulawayo and Harare by the Biomedical Research and Training Institute (BRTI). Close to 10 000 youth between the ages of 16 and 24 years were enrolled into the study with over 8 500 (86%) accepting testing for chlamydia, gonorrhoea and trichomoniasis. The STICH study was nested within CHIEDZA/UKUKHANYA…

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The Treble Tragedy in Women’s Health: Unmet Need for FP – Unwanted Pregnancy – Unsafe Abortion

Healthtimes

Dr Munyaradzi Murwira Introduction Women and girls in developing countries face multiple challenges in accessing affordable, quality and comprehensive sexual reproductive health and rights (SRH&R) services. This article explores three key issues that affect women and girls sexual reproductive health outcomes, morbidity and mortality. The “Treble Tragedy” in women’s health, particularly in the developing world are – Unmet Need for Family Planning – Unwanted Pregnancy – Unsafe Abortion. The Primary Health Care (PHC) concept coupled with the Universal Health Coverage (UHC) approach are opportunities to ensure universal access to SRH&R…

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Zimbabwe Establishes E-Learning Platform For Midwifery Training

Michael Gwarisa

In a bid to strengthen the provision of reproductive health services in hard-to-reach areas and during emergencies, the United Nations Population Fund in Zimbabwe (UNFPA-Zimbabwe) is supporting the Ministry of Health and Child Care (MoHCC) to develop an E-Learning platform for pre-service and in-service midwifery training. By Michael Gwarisa The system was developed in 2022 as part of efforts to scale up digital innovations to facilitate capacity building and delivery of quality service through support from the Health Development Fund (HDF). According to the UNFPA Zimbabwe 2022 Annual Report, there…

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Reviewing the impact of the legal lacuna in Zimbabwe’s abortion law

Healthtimes

By Memory Pamella Kadau Zimbabwe has one of the highest maternal mortality ratios in the world. According to the Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey (MICS) of 2019, Zimbabwe has a maternal mortality ratio of 462 deaths per 100,000 live births and a neonatal mortality rate of 32 deaths per 1000 live births. While this is an improvement from the 614/100 000 live births for maternal deaths recorded in 2014, the slow rate of progress indicates that Zimbabwe is unlikely to meet the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) target for reducing maternal mortality.…

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