Disability in Zimbabwe

Impact

Impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on access to healthcare among people with disabilities: evidence from six low- and middle-income countries. “Key barriers to accessing healthcare during the pandemic included changes in availability of services due to systems restructuring, difficulty affording care due to the economic impacts of the pandemic, fear of contracting coronavirus, and a lack of human support to enable care-seeking.” (2023, International Journal for Equity in Health)

Youth with Disabilities and their Participation in the Zimbabwean Society. (2023, This Ability Hub)

A path toward disability-inclusive health in Zimbabwe Part 2: A qualitative study on the national response to COVID-19 “People with disabilities demonstrated good awareness of COVID-19 mitigation strategies, but faced difficulties accessing COVID-19 information and health services. Challenges to the implementation of COVID-19 guidelines related to a person’s functional impairment and financial ability to do so. A key supply-side constraint was the perceived de-prioritisation of rehabilitation services. Further restrictions on access to health services and rehabilitation decreased an individual’s functional ability and exacerbated pre-existing conditions.” (2022, African Journal of Disability)

A path toward disability-inclusive health in Zimbabwe

“Inclusion was facilitated by clinic staff support of people with disabilities’ access to medication through referral to mission hospitals and private clinics, and the lobbying of organisations of people with disabilities.” (2022, African Journal of Disability)

Should disability-inclusive health be a priority in low-income countries? This paper proposed four complementary arguments why it is important to focus on people with disabilities. They include a “a growing rationale that disability-inclusive health systems will work better for all“ and “that they will create cost savings“. (2022, Global Health Action)

Henry Maysa an advocate for rights of disabled people, passed away. (2023, Temba Mliswa)

Being a deafblind child in Africa: My personal experience

"Unlike most fellow children with deafblindness, I was lucky enough to have an educated, working and caring father who supported me in my education. By the time he died, when I was doing my junior secondary school, he had built a foundation for my upbringing. My disability nevertheless haunted him. I would hear my parents whisper their helplessness and despair when I lost a great deal of my hearing and sight at the age of 10 and 15 respectively. It was a miracle to them that I continued to pass at school despite my deteriorating senses of sight and hearing. This is what encouraged them to keep me in school. They concentrated on enhancing my ability, rather than limiting me because of my disability. " (2022, Thought Leader)

Disability campaigners in Zimbabwe speak out The campaigners want the outdated Disabled Persons Act of 1992 to be repealed. (Feb, Global Voices)

Situation Analysis of the rights of persons with disabilities. (2022, UNPRPD)

A call to include people living with disabilities in development programmes. (2022, Chronicle)

Include PWDs in politics, governance, govt urged (2022, News Day)

Concern over ability of the disabled to vote in Zimbabwe (2023, Caj News)

Voting With Dignity - the Plight of Persons With Disabilities in Zim's Elections. (2023, All Africa)

Chivis’ Story of Hope: To the future, with love “We can detect abuse and fall in love.” Support groups raise Sexual and Reproductive Health Rights awareness in communities where persons with disabilities are abused and shunned. (2023, UNICEF)

People with albinism struggling against stigma: risks of attacks, rape, trafficking and other discrimination. (2022, News Day)