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By Robert Tapfumaneyi
ZIMBABWE currently has one of the lowest rates of medical male circumcision coverage (CMEM) in sub-Saharan Africa, with 14.3% of men aged 15 to 49 circumcised in 2017.
This is in line with the UNAIDS report on HIV and women in Zimbabwe released last week.
According to the report, despite the fact that Zimbabwe is one of the UNAIDS priority countries for the extension of VMMC, which is included in the national prevention strategy of the national combination of the country.
"By 2018, Zimbabwe wants to reach 1.3 million men with VMMC (80% of 13-29 year olds), but by 2016 it had only reached 46.3% of this target group, "reads the report.
"However, data from the 2015 survey found that HIV prevalence was lower among circumcised men (7.6%) than among the others (11%), a difference from previous results, where she was higher.
"A study on how to encourage teen adoption recommended promoting VMMC as a smart lifestyle choice rather than a medical intervention."
In Zimbabwe, various youth radio, social media and school campaigns, including celebrity endorsements, have been organized for this purpose in recent years.
"The use of football to engage adolescents has also been proven," reads the report.
"A study conducted in 26 schools in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe, revealed that a football program called Make-The-Cut-Plus more than doubled the chances of absorption of services.
In 2007, the World Health Organization (WHO) and UNAIDS recommended voluntary male medical circumcision (VMMC) as a critical component of HIV prevention in countries with generalized epidemics, after discovering that circumcision male could reduce the risk of badual transmission of HIV women to men by 60%.
In response, VMMC accelerated rapidly in the region between 2008 and 2014, reaching 3.2 million circumcisions per year.
In 2015 and 2016, this figure has fallen to around 2.6 million circumcisions, although trends vary from one country to another.
In 2015, VMMC among adult men was still below 30% in Botswana, Malawi, Namibia, Rwanda, Swatini, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
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