By Wallace Mawire
Responsible authorities in the Ministry of Health and Child Care in Zimbabwe have been urged to improve access to reproductive health services which are said to be a remaining challenge for some key groups.
The remarks were made by Tessa Mattholie on behalf of Dr Jo Abbott, UK in Zimbabwe Development Director at a recent meeting in Harare to commemorate World Population Day and launch of the 2025 State of World Population Report facilitated by the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and the Zimbabwe National Family Planning Council (ZNFPC).
Mattholie said the key groups include adolescents. She said some of the barriers include distance from facilities for some rural women and financial barriers for many of the urban poor. “Expanding access to these basic reproductive health services is essential to ensuring that reproductive agency is not just a principle, but a lived reality for all,” Mattholie said. She said the United Kingdom government remains a steadfast champion of sexual and reproductive health and rights globally. She said in April this year at the UN Commission on Population and Development, the UK spoke boldly on the need to protect and progress sexual reproductive health and rights in the face of Global rollback and joined 77 other countries in signing a joint statement to that effect. Mattholie said through its partnerships and development assistance, the UK continues to support programmes that expand access to comprehensive reproductive and maternal health services, including contraception and access to safe abortion services.
She said in Zimbabwe and beyond, the UK is investing in initiatives that promote reproductive agency, helping individuals to make choices that are right for them and their families. The 2025 State of the World Population Report was published by UNFPA under the theme :The real fertility crisis :The pursuit of reproductive agency in a changing world. This year’s report highlights that the real crisis is not one of population numbers, but of reproductive agency, the ability of individuals to make informed, autonomous decisions about whether, when and with whom to have children.
Mattholie said across the globe, this fundamental right is being undermined, often invisibly by structural barriers, social norms and policy gaps. Mattholie said Zimbabwe has made commendable progress in that regard with the most recent 2023/24 Zimbabwe Demographic and Health Survey showing notable increase in the Contraceptive Prevalence Rate (CPR), reflecting growing access to and uptake of family planning services. Mattholie said this is a testament to the government’s commitment to empowering individuals, especially women and girls to take control of their reproductive health.