Absent parents drive HIV vulnerability in Plumtree's youth

Thick forests of Mopane trees stretch across the Zimbabwe-Botswana border, so dense they appear to swallow the horizon. In these woodlands, the seasonal "army" arrives - not of soldiers, but of amacimbi, the protein-rich mopane worms that spark a burst of informal trade as buyers descend on Bulilima and Mangwe districts near Plumtree.

But beneath the seasonal abundance lies a troubling social shift - one that local health officials say echoes the darkest days of the 1990s HIV/AIDS crisis.

Three decades ago, Bulilima and Mangwe were among the districts hardest hit by HIV/AIDS before the rollout of antiretroviral therapy (ART) in 2004 transformed treatment outcomes in Zimbabwe. The epidemic devastated the working-age population, leaving behind child-headed households and grandparents forced back into parenthood.

Today, child-headed families are again emerging as a defining feature of the landscape - but this time, the driver is not death alone.

It is migration.

The province's able-bodied generation is trekking across borders to Botswana, Namibia and South Africa - particularly to eGoli - in search of economic survival. Many leave their children behind in Matabeleland South's rural communities.

The result is what some now call the "Diaspora orphan" phenomenon: children who are materially supported through remittances but emotionally and socially adrift.

Speaking during a media tour organised by the National AIDS Council of Zimbabwe (NAC) ahead of the 2025 World AIDS Day commemorations at Umzingwane High School, Bulilima District AIDS Coordinator Ronald Hanyane raised the alarm.

"We now have child-headed families. The parents have gone to seek greener pastures," Hanyane said.

"These minors can be headed by a 15-year-old sibling. They are all minors."

Unlike the impoverished orphans of the 1990s, today's children often have financial means. Remittances provide clothes, smartphones and steady cash flow.

"They have clothes, food, phones and cash at their disposal," Hanyane explained. "They can hold parties where they bring and share. And where such events occur, sex parties are common."

Health officials say the lack of adult supervision combined with disposable income is creating a dangerous environment that increases HIV vulnerability.

Matabeleland South now carries Zimbabwe's highest HIV prevalence rate at 15%, significantly above the national average of 9%.

According to the NAC 2024 HIV Estimates, of the province's 760,342 people, approximately 92,882 are living with HIV. While 89,280 individuals are on ART - translating to 98.4% treatment coverage - new infections continue to rise, particularly among adolescent girls and young women (AGYW).

Across all seven districts - Bulilima, Mangwe, Umzingwane, Matobo, Gwanda, Insiza and Beitbridge - female HIV incidence exceeds male incidence.

Bulilima records the highest female incidence at 0.38, followed by Mangwe at 0.37 - more than double the national estimate. In Umzingwane, female incidence stands at 0.22 compared to 0.12 for males.

Provincial NAC manager Mgcini Sibanda said these statistics reflect structural vulnerabilities.

"Matabeleland South province, in terms of HIV, has the highest prevalence rate as well as the incident rate," Sibanda said.

"Adolescent girls and young women bear a disproportionate burden of HIV compared to other sub-population groups."

He noted that many young women migrate to South Africa without documents or qualifications.

"They end up resorting to sex work, which predisposes them to HIV infection," Sibanda said.

Where children are not entirely alone, they are often left under the care of elderly grandparents. While respected as custodians of tradition, many struggle to navigate modern challenges.

"As known, grandparents are loving and can let the little ones do as they please," Hanyane said. "They can be hoodwinked easily."

Tech-savvy youth are often able to conceal risky behaviour from guardians unfamiliar with digital platforms and urban influences.

In response, NAC and partners including the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) are intensifying interventions through the Sista2Sista programme.

The initiative uses trained community mentors to guide adolescent girls and young women through structured "Safe Spaces" clubs.

Nonhlanhla Ndlovu, a Bulilima mentor, said each club supports about 50 girls over a year.

"Through Safe Spaces we form clubs where girls can openly discuss sensitive topics without fear of judgement," she said. "We provide interactive sessions on sexual and reproductive health rights, HIV prevention and financial literacy."

Officials say such programmes are essential to counter what they describe as the "absentee parent syndrome."

"We are losing the ground we gained in the HIV/AIDS response," Hanyane warned. "We have the ART, we have the medicine, but we don't have the parents in the homes to ensure the children are making the right choices."

Traditional leaders have also stepped in through a campaign dubbed "Not In My Village," aimed at preventing early marriage and protecting minors from exploitation.

"Traditional leadership have declared that no child below the age of majority will be allowed to be married out," Sibanda said.

Plumtree, often called the "Gateway to Botswana," is a transit point for thousands moving in and out of Zimbabwe. But for many families, it has become a one-way exit for the working class.

As mopane worms are harvested seasonally from the forests of Bulilima and Mangwe, health officials warn that another harvest is quietly unfolding — one of young lives increasingly vulnerable to infection.

The forests remain green. The remittances keep flowing. But unless migration, supervision and social protection gaps are addressed, officials fear the family structure within them will continue to thin out.