Mat North Correspondent
VICTORIA FALLS – In a deeply alarming development that underscores the severity of Zimbabwe’s escalating drug abuse crisis, an eight-year-old child is among four patients currently receiving treatment at the newly established Drug and Rehabilitation Centre in Victoria Falls.
The shocking admission of the minor was revealed during a visit to the facility at Chinotimba Clinic by local council officials, sending shockwaves through the community and highlighting how substance abuse is now trapping increasingly younger victims.
Victoria Falls Town Clerk, Mr Ronnie Dube, confirmed the child’s presence at the facility while providing an update on the centre’s development.
“We have four inmates currently that we are attending to, the youngest being eight years old,” Mr Dube stated.
He further explained the centre’s operational status, noting,
“The project of the drug rehabilitation centre, which is situated in Chinotimba Clinic is complete, it has been done and it has been completed. We partnered with the Minister of Health and the Government contributed ZWG$1.8 million for the project which was a big kickstart and we really appreciate that kind of contribution.”
Mr Dube indicated that while final furnishing touches are underway, the centre is fully functional. He anticipates increased admissions as awareness grows:
“We anticipate that, as the word goes that we now have this kind of a facility, we will have several inmates because the problem that has besieged the country, of drug abuse will also have a big time in the turn of it.”
The District Medical Officer declined to provide specific clinical details about the patients, citing professional ethics and patient confidentiality obligations.
The presence of an eight-year-old in rehabilitation highlights the critical challenges facing the nation and underscores the urgent need for robust preventative community programs to protect Zimbabwe’s youth, even as treatment centres like the one in Chinotimba begin their crucial work.
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