By Shalom Shawurwa
A new national health survey is lifting the lid on the country’s alcohol and tobacco habits — and the findings are as revealing as they are alarming.
While cigarette smoking remains rare among women, alcohol consumption is rising in some provinces with stark differences across age, gender and location.
The 2023–24 Zimbabwe Demographic and Health Survey (ZDHS), carried out by the Zimbabwe National Statistics Agency (ZIMSTAT) and the Ministry of Health and Child Care (MoHCC), paints a sharp portrait of the country’s changing health landscape.
The survey, which ran from December 2023 to May 2024, zeroes in on lifestyle habits that directly influence public health.
According to the survey, only 1% of women aged 15–49 reported currently smoking tobacco — a rate that health officials see as encouraging.
In contrast, 18% of men in the same age group are active smokers, with the majority smoking daily.
The data shows that the percentage of non-smoking men has remained relatively high over the years, rising to 82% in 2015 before slightly dipping to 81% in 2024.
The age group most addicted to cigarettes? Men aged 35–39, where smoking rates peak at 31% and the cleanest lungs are found in young men aged 15–19 — only 3% are smokers.
Interestingly, education and wealth appear to be protective factors. The more educated and wealthier the man, the less likely he is to smoke, among those who smoke daily, nearly a third (32%) limit themselves to fewer than five cigarettes per day.
On the alcohol front, the survey reveals a gender gap that’s hard to ignore as only 6% of women had a drink in the past month, compared to a whopping 35% of men and of those who did drink, 7% of women and 17% of men said they imbibed daily or almost every day.
The pattern of drinking also reveals some troubling signs with those who consumed alcohol, 32% of women and 39% of men admitted to having six or more drinks on drinking days — a red flag for potential binge drinking behavior.
By province, Midlands tops the list for male drinkers (47%), while Bulawayo leads among women (9%).
At the other end of the scale, Manicaland men (25%) and Matabeleland North women (4%) are the least likely to report recent alcohol use.
Urban Zimbabweans drink more than their rural counterparts. In cities, 10% of women and 38% of men had consumed alcohol in the past month and that drops to 4% and 32%, respectively, in rural communities.
