ReliefWeb

Zimbabwe is a lower middle income country with a highly literate population and significant natural resources. The country experienced a fall in life expectancy in the 1990s due to AIDS, but the prevalence of HIV fell after 2002 and life expectancy improved. Economic decline in the 2000s was associated with falling incomes and health, but has also improved somewhat after 2008. The Ministry of Health and Child Care (MoHCC) reported in 2013 that the top ten causes of death in the country were HIV and AIDS, influenza and pneumonia, tuberculosis, stroke, coronary heart disease, malaria, diarrhoeal diseases, low birth weight, birth trauma and maternal conditions. The health services are organised at five levels, with village health workers and committees in the community, primary care level services called clinics or health centres, district, provincial and central referral hospitals. The MoHCC is responsible for health services. The majority of Zimbabweans use government services, faith based services and traditional health care, with about a tenth using the private forprofit sector. The country has adopted the primary health care (PHC) approach and the National Health Strategy 2009-2015 makes a commitment to ensure that communities are empowered to participate actively in the management of their local health services.
Village health workers, health literacy facilitators and home based carers in the community work with outreach workers and community nurses in health services to support community health. Ward health committees ensure community input is included in district health and health facility plans. Village health committees encourage wider participation by local communities and health centre committees (HCCs) are joint community – health service structures that provide a bridge of communication between the community and health care providers.