Zimbabwe anti-drug fight disjointed, MPs warn

Members of Parliament have raised grave concerns over Zimbabwe's disjointed and under-resourced response to the country's escalating drug and substance abuse crisis, citing a lack of coordination, inadequate infrastructure, and severe staff shortages in rehabilitation centres.

This comes as a damning report by the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Youth was tabled in Parliament, exposing serious gaps in policy implementation and frontline service delivery. The report revealed that Zimbabwe still lacks a consolidated national drug policy and is instead relying on a patchwork of outdated legislation, including the Dangerous Drugs Act, Liquor Act, and the Medicines and Allied Substances Control Act.

Currently, the country's anti-drug strategy is guided by the Zimbabwe National Drug Master Plan (2020-2025) under the Ministry of Health and Child Care. However, MPs said this plan has not translated into effective on-the-ground responses.

 "Each hospital visited possesses a unique set-up with distinct needs, underscoring a lack of uniformity and the requirement for each institution to address different aspects of care," the committee's report noted.

A glaring example of infrastructure failure was found in Gwanda, Matabeleland South, where a proposed rehabilitation centre housed in a former TB clinic was found in disrepair - missing roofs, damaged buildings, and poor security. The committee said such conditions made the facility unsuitable without significant renovations.

Only Chipadze Centre in Bindura stood out as a functional and dedicated drug rehabilitation centre, offering a possible model for replication. The rest of the visited institutions were primarily psychiatric hospitals, struggling to cope with a rising number of drug-related admissions.

Staffing shortages - largely due to the government's public service recruitment freeze - were flagged as a major impediment to effective service delivery. Although institutions like Ingutsheni Psychiatric Hospital in Bulawayo offer ongoing mental health training, other centres, such as Ngomahuru Hospital near Masvingo, were reported to suffer from demotivated staff and poor service quality linked to inadequate resources and remuneration.

 "Ngomahuru staff displayed a negative attitude, which seems to stem from lack of resources, poor facilities and poor pay," the report stated.

Ngomahuru is Zimbabwe's second-largest psychiatric facility after Ingutsheni and has recorded an uptick in admissions related to drug and alcohol abuse.

In response to the worsening crisis, President Emmerson Mnangagwa last year launched the Zimbabwe Multi-Sectoral Drug and Substance Abuse Plan (2024–2030), which includes calls for harsher penalties on drug peddlers. However, MPs say tangible implementation remains slow and fragmented.

Local experts have blamed the surge in substance abuse, particularly among youths, on factors such as poverty, broken homes, peer pressure, and lack of employment opportunities. A World Health Organization (WHO) report from 2019 revealed that Zimbabwe had the highest rate of heavy drinking among 15-to-19-year-olds in Africa, with 70.7% of males and 55.5% of females reportedly engaging in binge drinking.

According to the Anti-drug Addiction Association of Zimbabwe, unsafe practices like syringe sharing among drug users are also contributing to a spike in diseases such as HIV.

The Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) has responded with nationwide crackdowns through its "No to Illicit Drugs and Substances" operation, resulting in hundreds of arrests. Still, MPs argue that enforcement alone is not enough and are calling for a robust, well-funded, and unified national framework to address the root causes and rehabilitate victims.

As the country continues to battle this growing crisis, lawmakers are urging immediate policy harmonisation, rehabilitation centre upgrades, and expanded training for mental health professionals.