A WORRISOME trend is undermining the fight against HIV and Aids in Mashonaland West province, as research reveals that female condom utilisation remains dangerously low, leaving thousands of women exposed to infection.
The sobering reality was laid bare during a recent National Aids Council (NAC) media tour of the province, where officials and community members pointed to a lethal combination of poverty, lack of negotiating power and crumbling rural healthcare infrastructure.
Kadoma NAC district co-ordinator Delphine Sikhukulu confirmed that the uptake of the female condom had stagnated.
“There is not much progress in terms of women using female condoms; it’s still on the low side,” she said.
While exact statistical data was unavailable at the time, Sikhukulu stressed a deeper systemic issue, most young women completely lack safe sex negotiation skills, a vulnerability heavily exacerbated by rampant poverty.
For many young women in the province, economic survival routinely overrides health concerns.
Dephine Mashinga, a young mother from the area, explained how men exploit this financial desperation, particularly when dealing with sex workers.
“Young women are tempted by men who offer more money for sex without condoms, and young women fall for that,” she said.
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“Because of this economic crisis, young women accept US$10 for a short-time sexual escapade that usually costs US$5 or less.
“The temptation is too high to turn down.”
The crisis is further compounded by a severe lack of local healthcare infrastructure.
The Muzvezve area, which encompasses the Mayflower and Brompton mine communities, does not even have a single clinic.
This forces vulnerable villagers to travel to Kadoma for basic medical care, a journey that costs US$5 for a one-way trip.
For expectant mothers, the lack of local facilities is both a financial drain and a physical hazard.
Marbel Chinyoka, an expecting mother of three, shared that she has been forced to commute to Kadoma for safe deliveries for all her children.
“We pay US$10 round-trip to go to Kadoma for a check-up for every visit,” Chinyoka lamented.
“We need a clinic here. We have been telling our MPs, unfortunately from the Haritatos clan, but nothing has materialised.
“US$10 for a visit to the clinic in Kadoma is too much for us, especially when money is so difficult to get.”
Locals have expressed deep frustration with political figures, accusing them of weaponising healthcare for votes without delivering actual results.
“The Haritatos family, who have been MPs of the area, have failed to bring a clinic to their area, but have been promising one at every election time,” Mashinga said bluntly.
Efforts to obtain a comment from area Member of Parliament, Vangelis Haritatos, were unsuccessful as he was unreachable.
However, Health and Child Care ministry director for communications Donald Mujiri stated that the government is actively working to bridge the infrastructure gap.
“The ministry is aware of the need for more health facilities, and we are currently constructing health posts across the country, in addition to more than 1 900 existing health centres,” Mujiri said.
The crisis unfolding in Mashonaland West is a stark reminder that the fight against HIV and Aids cannot be won in a vacuum.
When a woman’s right to protect her own body is bartered away for the price of a single meal, a female condom is no longer just a healthcare tool: it becomes a luxury item she cannot afford to negotiate for.
Until rural infrastructure is built and economic desperation is alleviated, the virus will continue to find an easy pathway through the cracks of broken political promises and empty pockets.
