By Allince for Gender Justice and Community Development (AGJCD), in collaboration with Climate Action Coalition of Zimbabwe

Recent flooding in Zaka has once again laid bare the vulnerability of sexual and reproductive health (SRH) services in disaster-prone parts of Zimbabwe.

Heavy rains pounded the district, rendering key roads unusable and isolating communities from critical health facilities.

As a result, many women were unable to access essential services, including antenatal care and family planning.

In one alarming incident, a commuter omnibus was nearly swept away while attempting to cross flooded terrain. Among those on board was a pregnant woman urgently trying to reach a hospital for antenatal services.

Community members say the incident highlights a deeper crisis, where climate-related disasters are increasingly threatening women’s constitutional right to health care.

Residents say the situation has become a seasonal ordeal.

“Every rainy season, we are trapped. Women cannot reach clinics, and some give birth at home without skilled assistance,” said a community health worker in Zaka.

“Climate change is not just about crops and houses being destroyed. It is about lives — especially women’s lives — being put at risk when they cannot access reproductive health services,” added a youth leader from Chipinge.

Section 76 of the Constitution of Zimbabwe guarantees every citizen the right to basic health care services, including reproductive health care. However, recurring climate-induced disasters are making this guarantee difficult to realise for women in rural communities.

The situation in Zaka reflects similar challenges in districts such as Chipinge and Chimanimani, where cyclones and persistent heavy rains frequently cut off access to clinics and hospitals.

Although the near-tragedy involving the commuter omnibus drew attention, many comparable incidents remain unreported. Women in vulnerable districts often endure childbirth without professional medical assistance or miss vital maternal health and family planning services due to inaccessibility.

The AGJCD is calling on authorities to invest in climate-resilient health infrastructure. Strengthening roads, bridges and expanding access to mobile clinics are among the measures proposed to ensure uninterrupted access to SRH services, even during extreme weather events.

Safeguarding women’s health, the organisation says, is both a constitutional responsibility and a moral obligation in the era of climate change.

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Twitter: Climate Action Coalition of Zimbabwe