"Young people these days are more afraid of getting pregnant than they are of getting HIV."
This loaded statement was said by a young journalist who works closely with students at a tertiary institution, during a media training session on HIV reporting hosted by the National Aids Council recently.
All she was saying was that young people go to any length to prevent getting pregnant.
Apparently, there is usually a stock out of morning-after pills (emergency contraception pill) in pharmacies than there is of condoms in Zimbabwe's colleges and universities.
The condoms are free by the way!
It means most of these young people could be having unprotected sex.
This could explain why the country has been reporting a rise in new HIV infections among the young population (15 to 24 years).
According to UNAIDS, adolescents and young adults account for 34 percent of new HIV infections in Zimbabwe.
What a shocker!
The data shows that girls in this age group are getting infected at nearly twice the rate as their male counterparts.
But there is need to understand the drivers of these trends.
National Aids Council monitoring and evaluation manager Mr Amon Mpofu said these young girls were not getting the infection from their age mates.
Young girls are engaging in sexual activities with older men, where they have very little say and control over the use of condoms. This is despite the Age of Consent being set at 18 at Law.
"Girls start having sex earlier. But the problem comes because somebody who is not in that age group is having being intimate with this girl. There is a lot of sexual interaction happening with adolescents who are less than 18 years old and statistics are showing that more of these girls get infected at a very early age," he said.
The problems arise when the young girls who have been infected start having sexual relations with boys in their age group.
The data then shows boys in the 20 to 24 age group start catching up with the girls as they begin to account for more new HIV infection cases.
"Why is there such an upsurge of this? It is because they are starting to be sexually active. They are being intimate with girls who are infected already; girls who were infected by someone older than them," he said.
It is not only the rate of new HIV infections that is worrying. The country has been reporting a rise in other sexually transmitted infections such as gonorrhoea.
These infections have become resistant to treatment!
Statistics from the Ministry of Health and Child Care show that Zimbabwe recorded the highest number of new STI cases between January to June 2024, with vaginal discharge cases increasing form 45 807 in 2023 to 46 859. The number of urethral discharge cases also rose form 40 153 in 2023 to 41 888 in 2024.
National condom and male circumcision coordinator in the Ministry of Health and Child Care, Mr Sinokuthemba Xaba said this showed more people were having unprotected sex.
The link between STIs and increased vulnerability to HIV infections cannot be denied.
So the pressing concern of a rising number of new HIV infections and sexually transmitted infections (STIs) among young people needs to be addressed urgently.
One way to do this is through comprehensive sexuality education (CSE) to empower these young people.
But it cannot start at the age that they are becoming sexually active. It has to start an a much earlier age.
Zimbabwe's curriculum has already been modernised and a comprehensive sexuality education curriculum has since been developed to address these contemporary issues, impacting the learners at varying stages of their lives.
CSE aims to empower young people with the knowledge, skills, and values they need to navigate adolescence and adulthood. This education allows them to make informed life choices and ultimately, reach their full potential.
While the current state of comprehensive sexuality education in Zimbabwe's schools pushes abstinence first, it also gives teenagers options, teaches them in depth about sex and the risks.
Contrary to popular belief among many, CSE does not encourage sexual activity, but instead educates teenagers about it and teaches the them what to do should they choose to become sexually active.
"Sexuality education programmes usually have several mutually reinforcing objectives that include increasing knowledge and understanding, explaining and clarifying feelings, values and attitudes, developing or strengthening skills and promoting and sustaining risk-reducing behaviour. But it has to be age-appropriate based on typical cognitive, emotional, behavioural, physical, and sexual development for a particular age group and culturally competent," said Mrs Beauty Nyamwanza, the national Dreams and Youth coordinator in the National Aids Council.
She said evidence showed that sexuality education programmes did not increase sexual activity but on the contrary, some programmes were instrumental in delaying initiation of sexual intercourse, reducing the number of partners, increasing the use of condoms or contraception, reducing unprotected sex, pregnancy and STI rates.
This means comprehensive sexuality education could be the missing cog in addressing the HIV and STI epidemic among Zimbabwe's youth.
Not only can it provide accurate information on transmission, prevention, and treatment, enabling young people to protect themselves, it can also foster skills for building healthy, respectful relationships, reducing the risk of intimate partner violence and exploitation.
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Furthermore, CSE can equip young people with critical thinking and problem-solving skills to make informed choices about their sexual health.
However, there are areas where cultural and social norms often restrict open discussions about sexuality, shrouding such discussions in stigma and shame.
But that cannot stop the momentum of progress.
With the education system already implementing CSE, there could be need to increase the pace at which we are moving and widen the reach of CSE.
Educators and healthcare providers need constant capacitation to deliver CSE effectively. In addition to that, there is need to engage the parents and community leaders in promoting CSE. Because effective CSE implementation requires a collaborative approach. Everyone working together to promote sexuality education while also addressing the cultural concerns.
Zimbabwe's experience with HIV and STI prevention efforts highlights the importance of addressing the social and cultural determinants of health.
If the talk about sexuality begins early, it can address some of the complexities of adolescence and adulthood and drive the country towards an Aids free generation!
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