Zimbabwe battle against silent killers (NCDs): Need for public health awareness drive

Gibson Mhaka

A YEAR ago, Jabulani Moyo (44), from Bulawayo’s Mzilikazi suburb, was a giant in his world — a tireless carpenter whose strong, skilled hands shaped beautiful furniture and whose earnings fed his wife and three children.
His solid business was a pillar of the community, and his calloused hands were symbols of his strength and independence. Now, that pillar is shattered.

It began with a sudden, searing pain and a terrifying collapse.

The doctor’s diagnosis — a stroke, or “cerebral vascular accident” — was a crushing blow.
Moyo survived, but the man who returned home was a shadow of his former self. His dominant right side is now a burden, and his speech is a frustrating, slurred struggle.

He can no longer hold a saw, let alone plane wood, and the steady income that defined his identity has vanished.
His illness has created a crushing financial vacuum, shifting the entire family’s burden onto his wife, who works as a street vendor.

“My hands, the hands that built our life, are useless now. I am a shadow of the man I was, and the hardest part is knowing I’m a burden.

“My wife, she has to carry all the weight — the bills, the children, everything — and I can do nothing but watch.
“I am still their father but I can no longer fulfil the sacred duty of a man in my culture, to look after his own,” lamented Moyo.

Moyo’s struggle is not just a personal tragedy; it is a terrifyingly familiar face in a nation where vascular diseases — from hypertension to stroke — are silently and devastatingly on the rise, tearing apart the foundations of families across Zimbabwe.

Cardiovascular disease remains the world’s leading cause of death, a global trend mirrored in Zimbabwe where non-communicable diseases (NCDs) now account for a staggering 40 percent of all national fatalities, according to Health and Child Care Minister, Dr Douglas Mombeshora.

NCDs are diseases that cannot be passed from person to person, such as cancers, diabetes, chronic respiratory illness and cardiovascular diseases (CVDs).

“NCDs, including cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, chronic respiratory illness and cancers, accounted for approximately 40 percent of all deaths in Zimbabwe in 2024,” said Dr Mombeshora noting the figure is consistent with global disease burdens.

This surge is particularly alarming among younger populations, with experts indicating that individuals aged 40 and below are increasingly affected.

Statistics show that about 44 percent of NCD disability adjusted life years (DALYs), a measure that sums years of life lost to premature death and years lived with disability are lost before the age of 40 years.

A critical factor contributing to this trend has been the shift in dietary habits as more people gravitate towards processed and ultra-processed foods, coupled with sedentary lifestyles.

The leading causes of CVD, including inadequate diet, smoking, obesity, and lack of physical activity, heighten risk factors like high blood pressure and elevated blood sugar, which affect blood flow to the heart and brain — a phenomenon called atherosclerosis.

To combat this rising trend, the Zimbabwean Government has implemented a comprehensive, multi-pronged plan focused on preventative health and healthier lifestyles.

“These include promoting healthier lifestyles through public education campaigns on diet, physical activities, tobacco and alcohol reduction and also implementing targeted fiscal measures, including taxes on fast food, that is 0,5 percent levy on items like pizza, fries or hot dogs to discourage unhealthy consumption,” Dr Mombeshora explained.

The Government is also scaling up community engagement by supporting exercise initiatives like fitness clubs, walkathons, and marathons to enhance physical activity across vulnerable groups.

Furthermore, the country has adopted the Package of Essential NCDs Interventions (PEN) at the primary care level, increasing access to medicine, testing, and monitoring of NCDs.

In support of the national drive, Zimbabwe’s largest private medical aid society, Cimas Health Group, has intensified its community outreach, specifically promoting physical activity to safeguard heart health.

Cimas chief executive officer Mr Vuli Ndlovu encouraged the public to prioritise heart health through regular exercise, endorsing cycling as an effective way to strengthen the heart muscle and reduce cardiovascular risk.
“Heart health is central to overall wellness. The focus is to raise awareness about heart health and the importance of keeping the heart in good shape through regular physical activity and healthy lifestyle choices.

“Up to 80 percent of premature CVD deaths are preventable through affordable access to care, early screening, and making healthy choices in nutrition, activity, and lifestyle,” Mr Ndlovu said, noting that the heart is vulnerable to behavioural risks such as sedentary living, diabetes, and unhealthy diets.

Cimas organises its signature “Pedal to Wellness” cycling events dedicated to promoting cardiovascular fitness and building lifelong healthy habits.

 

While lifestyle NCDs pose the greatest mortality risk, the most prevalent heart condition requiring surgical intervention in Zimbabwe is rheumatic heart disease (RHD).

Cardiovascular and thoracic surgeon Dr Wilfred Muteweye confirmed last year that RHD cases are the most common conditions they operate on.

“The most common heart disease that we operate on is rheumatic heart disease (RHD). This is when the heart valves are damaged over time due to the body’s reaction to a throat infection,” Dr Muteweye explained.

RHD originates from a childhood throat infection where the immune response eventually damages the heart valve tissue, often taking 10 to 25 years to manifest severe symptoms.

Early surgical intervention, which involves replacing the diseased valve with an artificial one, allows for symptom reversal and a normal life expectancy.

The integrated national response — ranging from a new tax on junk food and community cycling programmes to advanced heart valve replacement surgery — positions Zimbabwe’s health sector in a crucial phase of transformation.

This multi-layered strategy, which prioritises prevention alongside high-tech clinical intervention, represents a significant and demonstrable model for how developing nations are adapting their health systems to fight the increasing prevalence of global non-communicable diseases.

Crucially, the urgency of this escalating crisis underscores the immediate need for a sustained, nationwide public health awareness drive to translate these policy efforts into widespread behavioural change and ultimately save lives.