HARARE – AN international development organization has called on the media to put all hands on deck in encouraging discussions around access to sexual reproductive health services despite uncomfortable truths about the sexual activity of adolescents.
This comes as sexually active adolescents seeking to protect themselves against sexually transmitted illnesses and unplanned pregnancies face difficulties in accessing sexual health services due to inconsistencies with current laws and other social and economic barriers.
“The discussion around age of consent and accessing sexual reproductive health services needs to be separated,” Humanist Institute for Development Cooperation (HIVOS) consultant Innocent Yekeye told journalists during an age of consent media meeting in Harare on Friday.
HIVOS is currently running a campaign, under the theme Consent to Access, aimed at increasing sexual reproductive health services accessibility for all.
Zimbabwe, in March declared the legal age of sexual consent to be 18 years. However, statistics continue to show that sexually transmitted infections, early childbirth and unsafe abortions are rife among teenagers aged 17 and lower.
The inconsistencies have seen advocates for access to sexual reproductive health services pushing authorities, stakeholders and ordinary Zimbabweans to ensure that children who request for sexual health services are attended to without stigma and discrimination.
“The Education Amendment and Children’s Amendment Bills are already making some moves to acknowledge practical realities and provide an opportunity to effect other amendments necessary to ensure greater protection of children from sexual exploitation and ensuring access to sexual and reproductive health services concerned,” Yekeye said.
“The Education Amendment Act gazetted 6 March 2020 allowed for pregnant girls to stay in school,” he continued.
“The same context that motivated having this law in place is the same state of affairs motivating the call for removal of age restrictions to access reproductive health care to prevent early marriages and unplanned pregnancies.”
HIVOS programmes manager Nana Zulu urged comprehensive sexuality education through advocacy networks at the national and local level.
“The age of consent should not be the basis for access restrictions to sexual reproductive health services,” she said.
“Adolescents – main interest is to access care and, in some cases, want confidential services to the exclusion of the parent or guardian. At the same time Health providers – main interest is to provide services in accordance with ethical standards, laws and policies.”
Consent requirements are one of the major barriers of adolescent access to sexual reproductive health services information and services
