My name is Mbuya Marange. I got married in 1996, being pregnant for the first time was a torrid time. I stayed with my mother in law whilst my husband worked in Harare. Due to financial constraints my mother in law was against the idea of going to hospital.
Despite labour pains that started in the morning till evening I gave birth tearing the vaginal tissue in the process. I did not get any medical attention. After a while I resumed my household chores but with consequences the wound started to swell.
My mother in law instructed me to put salt regularly on the wound eventually it was healed. When I conceived the second time I decided join my husband in Harare, I gave birth inside a hospital despite calls to have a home birth by my in laws.
When I gave birth in the hospital I was healed of all wounds and I was able to do all household chores without pain.
The Nutrition Action Zimbabwe initiative is helping mothers in the rural areas to give birth in hygiene environments as well as helping mothers to master new hygiene habits such as digging holes to throw waste materials, building toilets and preparing a 4 star diet that promotes the growth of babies.