MARTIN MAWAYA
GWERU-Eight children aged between 10 and 14 were among 4 140 adolescents and young people who sought family planning services for the first time in Midlands Province during the first quarter of 2026, raising fresh concern over early sexual debut.
Zimbabwe National Family Planning Council (ZNFPC) Midlands provincial data shows that young adults aged 20 to 24 accounted for the highest number of first-time family planning clients at 2 537, followed by 1 595 aged between 15 and 19.
Health experts say the figures reflect growing sexual activity among adolescents, driven by factors including exposure to sexually explicit content on digital platforms, child sexual abuse, inadequate parental supervision, substance abuse, school dropouts and limited access to comprehensive sexuality education.
They warn that many adolescents seek contraception only after becoming sexually active, increasing their risk of unintended pregnancies and sexually transmitted infections.
UNICEF has identified adolescent pregnancy as a major public health challenge in Zimbabwe, linking it to poverty, gender inequality, sexual violence and inadequate access to sexual and reproductive health information.
The report also highlights a sharp disparity in condom distribution across the province, with female condoms accounting for only a small fraction of those issued.
Gweru distributed 10 525 female condoms compared with 207 183 male condoms, while Kwekwe recorded 6 340 female condoms against 248 235 male condoms, the highest male condom distribution in the province.
Across Midlands, more than 1,5 million male condoms were distributed during the quarter, compared with about 22 000 female condoms.
Other districts reported similarly low female condom uptake.
Gokwe North distributed 3 331 female condoms against 177 113 male condoms, Gokwe South 805 against 221 052, Mberengwa 427 against 139 043, Shurugwi 204 against 204 944, Zvishavane 190 against 217 597, while Chirumhanzu recorded the lowest distribution at 154 female condoms against 99 858 male condoms.
ZNFPC Midlands provincial manager Karen Dzuke attributed the low uptake to limited awareness, cultural beliefs, misconceptions about the female condom, partner resistance and inadequate counselling and demonstrations by healthcare workers.
“Many women are still unfamiliar with the female condom, while others are discouraged by misconceptions and inadequate knowledge on how to use it. We are scaling up awareness campaigns and demonstrations to improve acceptance,” Dzuke said.
She said improving uptake would require sustained community education, stronger provider counselling, greater male involvement in reproductive health programmes, reliable supplies at health facilities and expanded youth friendly sexual and reproductive health services.
Dzuke also called for comprehensive sexuality education and stronger child protection systems to improve adolescents access to accurate reproductive health information and help reduce unintended pregnancies, HIV infections and sexual exploitation.
