01 Nov 2023

Botswana still needs to address existing gaps in Sexual and Reproductive Health Rights policy and programming.

Minister of Health, Dr Edwin Dikoloti said this at a high level meeting with Ntlo Ya Dikgosi on Sexual and Reproductive Health Rights in Maun on October 31.

Dr Dikoloti said that although Botswana had made strides on issues of sexual and reproductive health, more still needed to be done.

Sexual and reproductive health rights , he said, included issues like family planning, comprehensive sexuality education, prevention and treatment of sexually transmitted infections including HIV, gender equality, maternal health and reproductive cancer among others.

Dr Dikoloti said there were gaps in sexual and reproductive health rights  as family planning was not practiced by some HIV-infected women, who had unintended pregnancies while maternal deaths also increased between 2016 and 2021.

He said that even though new HIV infections had decreased in Botswana, the status quo was different among adolescents, who  registered high rate of infections due to early sexual debut, gender based violence, limited access to information and services.

“In addition, adolescents’ girls and young women are exposed to harmful social and cultural norms that increase their vulnerability to violence and sexual exploitation, as well as limiting their access to education,” he said.

Minister Dikoloti said traditional leaders were significant in many communities hence critical for advancing sexual and reproductive health rights. United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) officer in charge for South Africa and interim country director for Botswana and eSwatini, Mr Innocent Modisaotsile said traditional leaders should be instrumental in addressing sexual and reproductive health rights  issues as they were on other social issues. 

Mr Modisaotsile said that most health related issues could be prevented at community level if community leaders played a pivotal role.

He said that some challenges were perpetuated by some cultural practices that undermined sexual and reproductive health rights such as child marriages in some societies. Ends