Mat North, South men least violent against women: Zimvac

MEN in Matabeleland South and Matabeleland North provinces are the least violent against women in the country’s rural provinces, the Zimbabwe Vulnerability Assessment Committee (Zimvac) 2016 Rural Livelihoods Assessment survey has shown.

The two Matabeleland provinces recorded the least incidents of physical abuse cases against women at four percent each while Mashonaland East and Masvingo provinces topped the list at seven percent.

“About six percent women experienced physical violence and two percent experienced sexual violence.

“The highest proportion of women who experienced physical violence was in Masvingo and Mashonaland East at seven percent while the highest proportion of sexual violence was in Mashonaland Central and Mashonaland East at three percent,” reads the report.

The Zimvac survey noted that seven percent of women in the country were being abused by their spouses.

“The most incidents of physical and sexual violence were perpetrated by intimate partners. These included husbands, current/former boyfriends. For physical violence it was reported husbands constituted 51 percent and for sexual violence, current husbands and partners constituted 59 percent,” reads the report.

According to the report, Mashonaland East has the highest number of spousal abuse cases standing at 10 percent while Matabeleland North and South have the lowest cases with each province recording five percent.

Zimvac noted that food insecurity was cited as a driver of violence against women at homes.

The report also highlighted that violence against women is a serious issue in the country.

“In Zimbabwe, violence against women is widely acknowledged to be of great concern, not just from a human rights perspective, but also from an economic and social perspective,” reads the report — @nqotshili.