Shacking Off GBV: Zimbabwe’s Spotlight Initiative hosts Zumba Session to raise awareness on GBV

THE Spotlight Initiative in Zimbabwe on Saturday, May 13, 2023 hosted a #ShakeOffGBV Zumba Session to remind communities of the harm Gender Based Violence (GBV) poses in as far as blocking women and girls from realizing their full potential. By Michael Gwarisa According to the 2015 Zimbabwe Demographic and Health Survey, about one in three women aged 15 to 49 have experienced physical violence, and about one in four women have experienced sexual violence, since the age of 15. With elections approaching, fears are that more women and girls could…

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ZACH Rallies Media to Amplify Voices of Adolescents Girls and women at risk of GBV

NEW HIV infections being recorded in Adolescent Girls and Young Women (AGYW) in Zimbabwe could be linked to harmful practices such as Gender Based Violence (GBV), Child Marriages and sexual abuse obtaining in the country, the Zimbabwe Association of Church related Hospitals (ZACH) has warned. By Michael Gwarisa UNAIDS data shows that  Adolescent Girls and Young Women from sub-Saharan Africa, aged 15-24, remain at substantial risk of acquiring HIV and in 2021, they accounted for 63% of all new HIV infections in 2021 largely due to  biological, socio-economic, religious, and…

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SASA Project Records Gains from Partnering Chiefs in Ending Sexual and Gender Based Violence against Women and Girls

WHILE Chiefs have traditionally been blamed for preserving harmful cultural practices that perpetuate abuse of women and girls, the SASA project being implemented by the Zimbabwe Association of Church related Hospitals (ZACH) has managed to rope in chiefs and other traditional leaders as allies in ending Sexual and Gender Based Violence (SGBV) in communities. By Michael Gwarisa SASA stands for Start Awareness Support Action (SASA) and ZACH is implementing the program in eight hot spot districts (Chimanimani, Mguza, Kwekwe and Umzingwane] plus 4 additional hot spot districts). Speaking during the…

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Illicit drug abuse on the rise among Zimbabwean Women

THERE has been an increase in the number of women who use and inject drugs in Zimbabwe over the years owing to a myriad of factors, chief among them being unemployment, poverty among a host of other issues. By Michael Gwarisa This has been revealed by the Final Situation Assessment report of drug use in five provinces to inform HIV and TB programming for people who use drugs. The research was conducted by the Zimbabwe Civil Liberties and Drug Network (ZCLDN), the National AIDS Council (NAC) and the Ministry of…

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Love Shouldn’t Hurt Walk/Run sends strong message against GBV and Child Sexual Abuse

WITH the 16 Days of Activism against Gender Based Violence (GBV) commemorations drawing near, the Population Solutions for Health (PSH), has kick started the campaign with a Walk/Run as a way of raising awareness against GBV and all forms of violence against women and girls. By Michael Gwarisa The Walk/Run also observed Child Marriages which is a form of GBV and represents sexual abuse of young girls below the age of 18 years. The Walk/Run is part of the ongoing Love Shouldn’t Hurt Campaign the PSH launched in 2021 through…

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MSF Holds Regional Scientific Day in Zimbabwe

THE Medecins Sans Frontieres / Doctors Without Borders (MSF) hosted a half-day regional scientific day in Harare, Zimbabwe where various scientific innovations and researches from MSF’s field programs around the world were presented. By Michael Gwarisa The event was a hybrid setup where delegates attended both virtually and physically in Harare. Giving his Keynote address, Ministry of Health and Child Care (MoHCC), Group Captain, Dr. Munyaradzi Dobbie, Chief Director Public Health applauded MSF’s interventions in Zimbabwe’s healthcare sector. As government, we are appreciative of MSF’s continued support to Zimbabwe and…

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Domestic Violence cases rise in Zimbabwe

There has been an unprecedented rise in domestic violence cases in Zimbabwe. This has impelled the government to formulate and implement reactive laws to address the menace. One such instance has been the crafting of the Zimbabwe Domestic Violence Act (DVA) of 2007. By Own Correspondant  Thirty-year-old Sinakaniwe Ndlovu (not real name) still shivers with fear when she thinks of the ill treatment she received at the hands of her husband during the COVID-19 pandemic period. Ndlovu was forced to endure all the abuse in fear of being stigmatized and…

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Musasa One Stop Centre Assists 500 GBV Survivors

THE Hopley One Stop Centre being run by Musasa Project through support from the UNFPA and the ministry of Women Affairs, Community Development, has served a total 500 women and girls who experienced GBV and other forms of violence over the past 10 months. By Michael Gwarisa Hopley has a high incidence of GBV as well as other harmful practices such as Child Marriages and teenage pregnancies which are at 18% respectively while 70% of women in Hopley are mothers by age 24. Speaking during a visit to  centre by…

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O3 Annual Review Meeting kicks Off In South Africa

UNESCO’s flagship Our Rights, Our Lives, Our Future (O3) programme Annual Review Meeting (ARM)  commenced in Johannesburg , South Africa on Wednesday, May 5 2021. By Michael Gwarisa in South Africa The O3 review meeting will be running for three days where UNESCO and its partners will review O3’s transformative results focusing on children, adolescents and young people. The O3 Programme which is being run in partnership with ministries of education and health, across 33 countries in sub-Saharan Africa has already made significant strides despite its Compressive Sexuality Education (CSE)…

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UNESCO’s flagship O3 Programme Empowers 30 million learners to prevent HIV, reduce EUPs and eliminate GBV

JOHANNESBURG, South Africa, 4 Mai 2022 — UNESCO’s flagship Our Rights, Our Lives, Our Future (O 3) Programme is holding its Annual Review and Partners’ Meeting from 4 to 6 May 2022 in Johannesburg, South Africa. The meeting will be opened by the Honorable Angie Motshekga, Minister of Basic Education in South Africa. The O 3 Programme, run in partnership with ministries of education and health, supports 33 countries across sub-Saharan Africa to work towards a region where adolescents and young people are empowered, healthy and resilient and have the…

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