The Re-imagining Reproduction (Re-Re) project organizes rotational country visits for postdoctoral fellows every year. The in-country postdoctoral fellows take the lead in conceptualising and planning the visits. 

In June 2024, the Re-Re team were hosted by postdoctoral fellows from Zimbabwe. I visited Zimbabwe for the first time. Arriving at Harare International Airport on the evening of the 25th of June, Lilian, the other Kenyan fellow, and I headed for the Bronte Garden Hotel in Harare. Compared to Kisumu, which is a city in Kenya, Harare is cold. Luckily, I had been warned by our hosts so I came prepared with warm clothes. On the first night, I met the new cohort of postdoctoral fellows who joined the group at the beginning of 2024. 

That evening, the Zimbabwean team showed us a bit of the city and took us out for dinner. I was surprised to see sex workers braving the cold temperatures along the street walks. The restaurant we were taken to is one that is known for serving good “African food”. We indulged in the continent-wide cuisine of meat served with ugali. We joked that despite being in a different and new country, the food choices between the two countries, ingredients and methods of preparation were not vastly different.

The following day, we went to the Women’s University in Africa, where we conducted a writing workshop that was attended by staff and postgraduate students. The workshop consisted of an introductory talk followed by smaller group discussions that were led by members of the Re-Re team. Some of the topics that we discussed during this event include how to identify predatory journals and why it is important to publish in recognized, peer-reviewed journals. The overall engagement was generative, and it was good to share experiences from different universities on the continent.

Over the 27th – 28th of June 2024, we participated in the Conceiving Change conference at the Bronte Garden Hotel. The opening address of the conference was powerful, a keynote speech delivered by the highly esteemed scholar, Professor Rudo B. Gaidzanwa. It was good to see the different generations of scholars that she had taught who were present in the room. 

That evening, we attended the Conceiving Change exhibition opening at Nhaka Gallery. The event line-up included opening remarks by Moraima Ndlovu, performance poetry, musical performances and short talks from the various artists about the theme of Conceiving Change. I was particularly drawn in by a poem from Chioneso Chitsito challenging inequity in access to reproductive health services. In the performance, she militantly chanted the phrase ‘Male condoms are free and sanitary towels are bought’. Although the poem was delivered in Shona, the power of the message resonated through the delivery. Returning to the hotel after the event, we encountered young men selling sex and Viagra publicly. My Zimbabwean colleague told me that although this was illegal, selling sex and sexual enhancers was common. Black market trade in Harare and other parts of Zimbabwe is part of everyday life. 

Overall, the visit to Harare was memorable and there was an overall sense that we had achieved some great milestones in the project, including having the opportunity to network with scholars from Zimbabwe working on reproduction.