FSN-ZIMACE PROJECT

About This Project

FSNT in partnership with the Women Coalition of Zimbabwe (WCoZ) and Women and Law in Southern Africa (WLSA) with support from ZIMACE are implementing the SWAAGHZ project aimed at capacitating women and girls in Zimbabwe to advocate for accountable health governance in Zimbabwe. This project is in line with Zimbabwe’s Vision 2030 of an improved health systems that makes Sexual and Reproductive Health Rights (SRHR) issues easily accessible to many and the United Nations Agenda 2030, particularly the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 3 and 5 which focuses on promoting healthy lives for all people at all ages and to achieve gender equality and empowerment for all women and girls respectively.

In this light, this project came by the realization that institutional policies that govern tertiary institutions in Zimbabwe does not explicitly address sexual health challenges faced by female students especially on the dissemination of SRHR information hence it limits their participation in various activities that sharpen their intellectual prowess hindering their maximum potential. Most tertiary institutions are yet to contextualise and revamp their polices with gender lenses encompassing SRHR related issues. This has left a gap in information dissemination and service provision on women’s health Therefore, there is need for further advocacy for these SRHR rights. Thus, there will be a great improvement on female participation in the SRC and any other student leadership structures when there is a dialogue between the female students and their service providers.

OVERALL OBJECTIVES

• To build strong women and girls’ health rights movement working collaboratively at both local and national levels to influence legislative, policy, and practice changes.
• To influence SRHR and gender sensitive policy formulation and review that ensures a health and safe learning environment in higher and tertiary institutions of Zimbabwe.
• To provide a space for female students to interface with duty bearers and university authorities in a bid to come up a collective action on SRHR governance at campus.