It is now an offence to initiate or have any sexual or indecent relations with anyone under the age of 18 in Zimbabwe, as the new age of consent of 18 is brought into statute law.
UNICEF notes the passage of the legislation raising the age of consent for sexual relations to 18 years, which will contribute to a reduction of sexual abuse of children and adolescents, which continues to be a concern in Zimbabwe.
Available data suggest that in Zimbabwe, over a third of girls experience sexual violence before the age of 18 years. For most of these girls, the perpetrators are intimate partners.
Sexual violence on children has a significant impact on girls and boys who experience it. The effect is both physical as well as psychological.
The age of consent to sexual intercourse in Zimbabwe is 16 years for both females and males who are unmarried
as provided for by our law.The law also presumes that a 12 year old can consent to sexual intercourse but this is
subject to the presiding officers' assessment of a matter presented to him or her. Even though our laws provide
for the age of consent there is no law that protects the 16-18 year age group from consensual sexual intercourse
with their peers and from sexual predators who take advantage of this age group.
What this brief seeks to do is to provide guidance to policy makers on the challenges presented by the current
legal position and common practices for children seeking access to SRHR. Much needed reforms can address
problems that arise with early indulgence in sexual intercourse of young people which are HIV and AIDS, STI's,
unwanted teen pregnancies, obstetric fistula and unsafe abortions to name just a few. Duty bearers are largely
unaware that the age of consent to sexual intercourse and access to sexual and reproductive health services are
two issues that work hand in glove. One cannot speak of access to sexual and reproductive health services for
young people whilst not factoring in the legal aspects thereto. Thus it would be commendable to strengthen our
laws and policies to meet the sexual and reproductive health needs of young people in Zimbabwe.
RATIONALE
Despite the cultural beliefs entrenched in our communities that sexual intercourse related matters are a taboo,
children as young as 10 years are sexually active before they reach the age of 18 years as per the Zimbabwe's
demographic health data survey of 2015. The survey reveals that 40% of girls and 24% of boys are sexually
active before they are 18 years of age. Issues continue to emerge, such as the scourge of child prostitution in
places like Epworth and Hopley as well as hotspot areas in Zimbabwe's haulage trucking routes such as Ngundu,
Beitbridge and Kazungula Border posts. These scourges have necessitated the age of consent and access to
SRHS debates. Sexual activities remain detrimental to the health and wellbeing of young persons and they put
them at high risk of various reproductive health challenges such as unwanted pregnancies, unsafe abortions and
high levels of STI and HIV infections which are a major public health concern.