Zimbabwe: Peer educators change the narrative on SRHR

Youth Aspire Development Trust (YADT), a Voice and Choice Southern Africa Fund (VCSAF) grantee, worked with 25 adolescent girls and young women (AGYW) Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights (SRHR) Advocacy Champions in Chitungwiza, not far from Harare in Zimbabwe.  The young women received comprehensive training on SRHR, HIV prevention and advocacy skills to become effective advocates with their peers and others within their communities.

The AGYW SRHR Advocacy Champions led activities to:

Increase Awareness and Knowledge about SRHR and HIV among young people in Chitungwiza.  They led many outreach activities, such as workshops, seminars, and one-on-one sessions. Tanatswa[1] for example, educated her peers about the importance of HIV testing and safe sexual practices. She organised weekly discussion groups at her school, where she shared information and answered questions. Her efforts led to a number of students getting tested for HIV. Tanatswa’s leadership and dedication earned her recognition from both her peers and the school administration. Altogether, champions held 109 school based sessions within the first six months of 2024.

2263 young people in Chitungwiza were engaged through school visits, community workshops, and social media campaigns, which broadened the project’s impact by the end of June, 2024, nearing the project’s target of 2500 by the end of December.

Collaborate with local health facilities to link young people to SRH and HIV services. These included HIV counselling, testing, and treatment. Two clinics in Chitungwiza (PZAT and Population services Zimbabwe) testified at a feedback meeting that there was increase of young people using their services due to the work of the SRHR advocacy champions who were referring and sometimes accompanying other young girls and women, including some with disability, to them. Health workers applauded YADT for training and supporting the champions and they also recommended that SRHR champion’s work should be well compensated to keep them motivated and to ensure continuity of their work.

Engage with other young people to influence behaviour change, to both adopt safer sexual practices as well as to be more confident in seeking SRH services. Tanyaradzwa focused on reaching out to young women in her neighborhood. She made door-to-door visits, providing information on SRHR services and encouraging young women to visit local health facilities. Tayaradzwa’s personal approach helped break down barriers and build trust. As a result, many young women who were previously hesitant to seek SRHR services felt more comfortable doing so. Tanyaradzwa’s efforts contributed to an increase in the uptake of contraceptive services.

Engage with community and community leaders to tackle stigma and misconceptions surrounding HIV and SRHR.  More than 500 community members including parents, teachers and local leaders participated in dialogues and awareness campaigns. This broader community involvement helped to create a more supportive environment for young people seeking SRHR and HIV services without fear of judgment or discrimination.

Marvellous addressed stigma and misconceptions about HIV in her community. She organised community dialogues and invited local leaders to participate. Through honest conversations, Marvellous helped change negative attitudes and reduce stigma associated with HIV.  After the dialogues, the United Methodist Church and Apostolic Faith Mission (AFM) Assembly have held open discussions with youth about HIV prevention and stigma. The sessions have increased awareness and understanding among young people, reducing misconceptions and promoting a supportive environment for those living with HIV. These churches are playing a crucial role in changing community attitudes and encouraging proactive health behaviours among the youth. This has strengthened the community’s overall response to HIV.

Champions are also focusing on women leaders in churches and held a workshop with 30 of these from 12 churches in early 2024.  Women leaders such as pastors, chair women, youth leaders and Sunday school teachers better understand the issues that girls face.

This case study highlights the importance of peer-led initiatives in addressing SRHR and HIV prevention challenges and underscores the potential for scaling up such programmes.

[1] All names in the case study are pseudonyms.