Bridging the gap “Access to SRHR services”
Zimbabwe National Family Planning Council’s Matabeleland North province offices joined hands with a number of partners and celebrated ‘the month of LOVE’ February in a unique style, providing sexual reproductive health services in and around the city. February the 13th is International Condom Day while February the 14th is Saint Valentine’s Day.
By Mission Gwafa (ZNFPC Mat north)
Zimbabwe National Family Planning Council’s Matabeleland North province offices joined hands with a number of partners and celebrated ‘the month of LOVE’ February in a unique style, providing sexual reproductive health services in and around the city. February the 13th is International Condom Day while February the 14th is Saint Valentine’s Day.
ZNFPC in collaboration with National AIDS Council, Childline, Plan International Zimbabwe and a number of Community Based Organizations embarked on a seven day community outreach program in and around Bulawayo suburbs providing free sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR), and family planning (FP) information and services. Sensitisation and awareness of the outreach program was through youth driven 30 minute radio programs broadcast on Skyz Metro FM. These were strategically broadcasted as pre and post Saint Valentine’s shows to promote safer sex practices and educate young people on condom use.
The outreach campaign came about after the realisation that with schools closed due to Covid 19, a good number of youths are idle and resort to drug and alcohol abuse and engage in sexual activities to pass time risking unintended pregnancies, HIV and sexually transmitted infections. Activities as exchange of gift around Saint Valentine’s Day also exposes young people especially girls to unsafe sex as they offer sex as presents or show of appreciation of gifts they would have been given. As such, there is need to create awareness on safe sex practices and provide free SRHR services whose user fees most adolescents and young people cannot afford.
The response by young people was overwhelming and more than 2000 adolescents and youth received free SRH services during this campaign. About 13000 pieces of condoms which included the Love, Icon Gold, FC2 and the new Blue and Gold condom were distributed during the outreach.
Some of the services adolescents and young people accessed during the outreach include comprehensive condom programming, contraceptives, STI/HIV screening, reproductive system cancer awareness and life skills education to young people from six suburbs, Mzilikazi, Old Magwegwe, Tshabalala, Pumula East, Pumula North and Cowdry Park, which were selected using the hot spotting criteria by NAC.