Online Reporter
Disability Issues-Dr Christine Peta
ON July 25, Zimbabwe commemorated the International Day of Women and Girls of African Descent.
This week, we thus highlight the sexual and reproductive health rights of women of African descent with disabilities.
These women are often judged by society as asexual beings — innocent of sexual thoughts, feelings and experiences — and unfit to be mothers.
These harmful perceptions deny them autonomy and reinforce the disregard of their sexual and reproductive health rights.
Across the African continent, narratives of exclusion persist.
Women with disabilities face forced sterilisation and are often treated as burdens within healthcare systems.
Traditional African beliefs, while rich in communal values, sometimes perpetuate exclusion by associating disability with evil spirits, witchcraft, broken taboos or curses that undermine family honour.
Such beliefs deepen discrimination, including in intimate health matters.
Yet African tradition also holds potential for inclusion.
Philosophies such as Ubuntu — “I am because we are” — emphasise dignity, interdependence and communal care, offering pathways for inclusion.
Where these values are embraced, women with disabilities are recognised as full members of society, capable of marriage, motherhood and leadership.
The challenge lies in transforming harmful narratives while amplifying inclusive cultural values that affirm dignity and belonging.
In some rural African communities, traditional birth attendants remain the primary providers of maternal care.
For women with disabilities, this can be both empowering and risky.
On one hand, traditional birth attendants are trusted figures who offer culturally sensitive support.
On the other, they often lack training in disability-inclusive practices, leaving women vulnerable to unsafe deliveries or neglect.
Informal systems can also endanger access to contraception, safe childbirth and STI/HIV prevention. However, women of African descent with disabilities are not passive recipients of care.
They are leaders, mothers and advocates whose voices can shape the future of sexual and reproductive health policy and practice.
Their rights are human rights and honouring them requires dismantling barriers rooted in stigma and neglect, while drawing on African traditions of care to build inclusive, dignified systems.
Zimbabwe has taken notable steps in advancing disability rights through the National Disability Policy, which was launched by President Mnangagwa in June 2021.
This landmark framework explicitly recognises the sexual and reproductive health rights of persons with disabilities, including women and girls.
The policy calls for accessible health facilities, training healthcare workers in disability inclusion and providing information in formats such as braille, audio and sign language.
In addition, the policy prohibits discrimination in healthcare and affirms the right of women with disabilities to make independent sexual and reproductive choices.
This is a critical step in dismantling the harmful perception that women with disabilities are “good-for-nothing asexual beings” incapable of forming intimate relationships or becoming mothers.
The Government of Zimbabwe has also made significant progress in aligning national strategies with international frameworks such as the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and Sustainable Development Goals.
Efforts include integrating disability into maternal health programmes, supporting community-based rehabilitation and working with organisations of persons with disabilities to monitor implementation.
These initiatives demonstrate a commitment to inclusive health systems.
As Zimbabwe commemorated the International Day of Women and Girls of African Descent, the message was clear: Honouring women with disabilities requires respecting and protecting their sexual and reproductive health rights, dismantling stigma and harnessing African traditions of care to build inclusive, dignified systems.
We must all work together to ensure effective implementation of policies while enabling communities to embrace inclusive traditions.
Only then can women and girls of African descent with disabilities fully realise their rights and contribute to shaping a just and equitable future.
Dr Christine Peta is a disability, public health, policy, international development and research expert. She can be contacted on: [email protected]
