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Andile Tshuma
This year International Women’s Day commemorations are running under the theme “Balance for better”. The idea is that there must be gender parity and balance in socio-economic and political opportunities availed to both men and women for better communities. It is a good idea to focus on some of the health issues that affect women globally. International Women’s Day is observed globally on March 8, celebrating the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of women, while also marking a call to action for accelerating gender balance.
The World Health Organisation says women are vital to their communities and their economies and should have access to the proper education and health services in order to make informed decisions about their health. This day should serve as a reminder for women to make their health a priority and build positive health habits for life.
Some health issues that affect women include, but are not limited to, menstrual health and the availability of sanitary wear, maternal health, sexual reproductive health, and breast and cervical cancer.
More than 20 years after countries signed pledges in the 1995 Beijing Declaration and Platform of Action, many women still face many health problems and policymakers must re-commit to addressing them.
Women account for nearly 50 percent of the global population and currently there are 81 countries where women make up the majority yet women continue to be among the most marginalised groups in many regions of the world, particularly when it comes to access to reproductive health care. In 2019, “women’s empowerment” still remains a pipedream in so many communities and this draws back a number of efforts that are meant to improve women’s health.
Cancer is one of the biggest health scares and challenges for the 21st century women and two of the most common cancers affecting women are breast and cervical cancers. Detecting both cancers early is key to keeping women alive and healthy and latest global figures show that around half-a-million women die from cervical cancer and half-a-million from breast cancer each year. The vast majority of these deaths occur in low and middle income countries where screening, prevention and treatment are almost non-existent, and where vaccination against human papilloma virus needs to take hold. Such statistics show that it is important to advocate for better balance in opportunities as having more women in leadership and more women in health will aid in spearheading women’s health projects faster. More inclusion of women is necessary so that women can craft programmes that are best suited for themselves.
During a twitterthon hosted by the Woman’s Institute of Leadership Development in Zimbabwe yesterday as part of commemorations of world women’s day, a number of women raised sexual reproductive health as a major issue that needs to be addressed in Zimbabwe. Some women said it was difficult for women living in rural communities to access some family planning services and birth control aides, while others said they had no power and were not in control of their sexual reproductive health as their sexual partners made most decisions concerning sex, protection and number of children to have. Sexual and reproductive health problems are responsible for one third of health issues for women between the ages of 15 and 44 years and unsafe sex is a major risk factor, particularly among women and girls in developing countries. This is why it is so important to get services to the 222 million women who aren’t getting the contraception services they need.
This women’s day is also a perfect time to audit our maternal health facilities. Many women are now benefiting from massive improvements in care during pregnancy and childbirth introduced in the last century but those benefits do not extend to all corners of the globe as women continue to face complications in pregnancy and childbirth. Most of these deaths could have been prevented, had access to family planning and to some quite basic services been in place. Another health matter which needs every woman’s focus is the HIV/Aids epidemic. Three decades into the Aids epidemic, it is young women, both in rural and urban settings, who bear the brunt of new HIV infections. In Zimbabwe we have many young women who still struggle to protect themselves against HIV and to get the treatment they need. This also leaves them particularly vulnerable to tuberculosis – one of the leading causes of death in low-income countries among women 20–59 years.
The World Health Organisation in its statistics says violence against women also contributes to poor health among women, both physically, and emotionally. Women are often subjected to a range of different forms of violence, but physical and sexual violence whether by a partner or someone else is particularly offensive. Latest statistics state that one in three women under 50 years has experienced physical and/or sexual violence by a partner, or non-partner sexual violence, violence which affects their physical and mental health in the short and long-term.
Continued gender-based violence has often led to mental health challenges among many women and evidence suggests that women are more prone than men to experience anxiety, depression, an emotional distress, and physical symptoms that cannot be explained medically. Depression is the most common mental health problem for women and suicide is one of the leading causes of death for women under 60 globally. Helping sensitise women to mental health issues, and giving them the confidence to seek assistance, is vital. With changes in lifestyles and eating habits, non-communicable diseases are becoming a growing cause for concern in women’s health. The Ministry of Health and Child Care in Zimbabwe has raised red flags after noting a significant rise in cases of non-communicable diseases such as diabetes, high blood pressure and cancers, among both men and women. In 2012, over 4.7 million women died from non-communicable diseases before they reached the age of 70 globally, most of them coming from low-and middle-income countries. They died as a result of harmful use of tobacco, abuse of alcohol, drugs and substances, and obesity. More than 50 percent of women in Europe and the Americas are overweight. Helping girls and women adopt healthy lifestyles early on is key to a long and healthy life. While we celebrate each other as women, let us also remind each other that our health is our greatest wealth as we strive for better opportunities and better balance in gender parity. — @andile_tshuma
Online Reporter