IN the bustling Mbare township of Harare, expectant mother Tendai anxiously awaits her latest prenatal check-up. After two previous high-risk pregnancies, she’s grateful for the accessible, quality care she’s receiving at the local community health clinic. “I was so scared before, but the midwives here have made me feel safe and supported throughout this journey,” she said in a recent interview.
Tendai’s experience reflects a remarkable transformation underway in Zimbabwe’s maternal healthcare system. Once plagued by soaring maternal mortality rates and limited access to prenatal/postnatal services, the country has embarked on an innovative crusade to ensure safer, more empowering childbirth experiences for women like her. Through pioneering programmes, strategic partnerships and a holistic, integrated approach to community health, Zimbabwe is blazing a trail in reducing childbirth risks and championing maternal wellbeing.
Zimbabwe has faced immense challenges in this realm in recent years, according to the National Health Strategy 2020. In 2018, the country recorded a maternal mortality ratio of 462 deaths per 100 000 live births, more than double the global average. Health experts note that factors like poverty, lack of healthcare infrastructure, transportation barriers and entrenched cultural norms all contributed to this alarming statistic.
[paywall]
Many expectant mothers, especially in rural areas, were simply unable to access the quality care and support they needed. But a turning point came when government and key stakeholders, including private healthcare providers like Cimas and First Mutual Life, joined forces, though at different stages, to overhaul the maternal healthcare system. “We realised we had to take valiant, comprehensive action to protect the lives of mothers and their babies,” said Simbarashe Mabaya director for maternal and child health in the Health and Child Care ministry at a recent health symposium in the capital, Harare.
[/paywall]
