By Cimba Shepherd Nhamo
Yesterday as the nation honor and celebrate the birthday of The Minister of Health and Child Care Dr Douglas Tendai Mombeshora, it is also the right time to reflect on his life, political career and government ministerial achievements. Dr Mombeshora a medical doctor by profession is also a national assembly representative for Mhangura constituency. He is a member of the ruling party ZANU PF and a member of its Politbro organ.
Dr Mombeshora is highly esteemed and respected in his province, Mashonaland West as he garnered the highest number of votes than any other legislator from his province in the 2023 elections. He is indeed a political powerhouse in his home province of Mashonaland West. A soft spoken man whose words are full of wisdom and maturity which is evidenced by the respect he get every time he attends social, political and ministerial gatherings where mostly he is invited as a guest speaker. A man whom many approach for advice and counsel.
Dr Mombeshora’s dedication for the welfare and future of the youths is evident in his initiatives which focus on the young people like the Mombeshora Youth Tournament. Such programs have been helping in grooming and identifying talents among the youth. Last year from the first to the seventh of September he hosted the Mombeshora Youth Tournament in his constituency, Mhangura, under thebtheme focusing on advocating for a drug and abstinence abuse free youths. From his own mouth, the future belong to the youth and their health is of paramount importance.
Under his leadership, Zimbabwe has made significant strides in reducing maternal mortality. The country has seen a decline from 651 deaths per 100,000 live births in 2010 to 362 deaths per 100,000 live births in 2022 and a much lower figure in 2024. This achievement demonstrates Dr Mombeshora’s commitment to improving maternal health outcomes. This has led the World Health Organization(WHO) to applaud the Zimbabwean government’s efforts in prioritising the lives of both pregnant women and their babies.
Dr. Mombeshora’s ministry has also made significant investments in family planning. The government has allocated USD3 million to procure contraceptives, making Zimbabwe the first country to receive match funding under the UNFPA Supplies Global Partnership. As a result, 2.1 million women in Zimbabwe are now using modern contraceptives. Priority has also been put to rural and remote areas of Zimbabwe with his ministry making sure that women in those areas can have easy access to family planning services.
The ministry also made notable progress in implementing the National Health Strategy (2021-2025). Life expectancy has also increased, public health expenditure has risen, and medicine availability has signficantly improved. The strategy has also led to significant progress in fighting HIV, tuberculosis, and malaria.
As the chair of the SADC Ministerial Committee on Health, Dr. Mombeshora has played a crucial role in promoting regional collaboration on health issues. He has emphasized the need for decisive action against diseases such as HIV, TB, and malaria, and has encouraged member states to share information and best practices.
Some of Dr. Mombeshora’s other notable achievements include the launching of the 2024 State of World Population Report which highlighted the importance of comprehensive sexual and reproductive health care. 2023-2024 also saw the country improving health infrastructure with the construction of new health centers and the refurbishment of existing facilities. His ministry has also been promoting health financing reforms and also engaging and collaborating with the private sector in addressing challenges facing the health sector.
As we look into his life political and ministerial achievements, there’s no doubt more should be expected from him this year. His dedication especially towards the improvements of the health sector and generally it’s image is something can not go unnoticed. As a medical doctor himself, he is very much alive to the challenges that the sector I’d facing and is dedicated to change it for good. Under the visionary leadership of President Emmerson Mnangagwa and his government’s Vision 2030, and with Dr Mombeshora at the helm of the health ministry, surely Zimbabwe is bound to attain it’s Vision 2030 health goals.
