The ManicaPost
Samuel Kadungure
Senior Reporter
As the country battles to stop the spread of Covid-19, the prolonged closure of schools has dealt Manicaland a heavy blow as nearly 1 000 girls fell pregnant and were married off between March 2020 and January 2021, The Manica Post has established.
Provincial development officer in the Ministry of Women Affairs, Community and Small and Medium Enterprises, Mr Munyaradzi Rubaya said 907 girls fell victim to unintended teen pregnancy and child marriages, while another 805 girls and 215 boys suffered sexual, physical, economic and emotional violence.
Chipinge, which is the hardest-hit district with abuse allegedly fuelled by harmful traditional norms, had 267 girls married off, while data on teen pregnancy cases were not readily available.
Mutare is second in the province at 147 cases of child marriages and 83 teen pregnancies, with the vice reportedly ameliorated by harmful religious practices by some white garment churches.
In January 2021, the district recorded seven cases.
Buhera had 96 child marriages and 25 adolescent pregnancy cases during the period under review, while Nyanga had 61 child marriages and 11 teen pregnancy cases.
Mutasa had 44 child marriages and 16 teen pregnancy cases, Chimanimani had 42 child marriages and 31 teen pregnancy cases while Makoni had 17 child marriages and 28 adolescent pregnancy incidences.
Last month, Makoni and Nyanga recorded three cases each.
Mr Rubaya highlighted that the figures could actually be higher as most pregnant teenagers are not visiting clinics.
“This is only a tip of the iceberg. These cases are reported where there is conflict and the two families have failed to reconcile, otherwise they (cases) are often dealt with and swept under the carpet at family level.
“It is unfortunate we do not have systems and institutions to pick these abuses at grassroots level. We rely much on the traditional leaders in identifying the cases, but in cases where they are the perpetrators, they won’t report. There is transmission of fear, leading to a conspiracy of silence at grassroots level. We have a very serious challenge,” said Mr Rubaya.
He cited a case in which a Chipinge chief married a school girl.
“If he can do that, what do think the ordinary villager will do? Who will restrain men from abusing girls then? We leverage on the local leaders’ power and influence in their communities, but if some of them are the culprits, how then can they stop what they are deeply involved in? It is very difficult because an ally has turned the perpetrator,” said Mr Rubaya.
He argued that the lockdown has seen children becoming idle, with some of them engaging in risky sexual behaviour.
Sexual exploitation and abuse, harmful religious and cultural norms, poverty, parental neglect, risky adolescent behaviours and lack of adolescent and reproductive health education have also been cited as major drivers of the vices.
“This is a highly institutionalised cultural and religious problem – and most of these institutions are closed and very difficult to penetrate,” said Mr Rubaya.
While the legal age of marriage is 18, a girl above 16 can consent to sex, and this loophole seems to be providing fertile ground for teen pregnancies.
Sadly, the young mothers are vulnerable to health complications, while some end up opting for unsafe abortions.
Various child rights advocates have also been pushing for the synchronisation of the legal age of marriage and the legal age of consent.
Provincial Education Director (PED), Mr Edward Shumba, said schools must prioritise guidance and counselling lessons to protect their students.
He said young mothers can still pursue their studies.
“Such statistics are scary but the victims should not be condemned. They can still come back to school and pursue their education,” said Mr Shumba.
Stimulus packages like the 18+ sponsored by Simukai and Plan International, Dreams (Fact), S4G (Care) were put in place to assist schoolgirl drop-outs to return to school.
