Calls Grow for Zimbabwe to Criminalise Sextortion as Women Vendors Report Abuse

Gender experts and women’s rights advocates are calling on Zimbabwe to explicitly criminalise sextortion following disturbing reports of sexual exploitation targeting women working in the country’s informal sector. The calls emerged during the Informal Sector Women’s Symposium on Gender Justice and Policy Positioning organised by Vendor Initiative for Social and Economic Transformation (VISET) in Gweru. Experts at the symposium warned that thousands of women vendors remain vulnerable to abuse, extortion and economic discrimination in informal trading spaces across Zimbabwe.

Women Vendors Face Harassment and Sexual Exploitation

Gender and inclusion specialist Thando Gwinji said women now make up more than two-thirds of Zimbabwe’s street vendors but continue to operate under unsafe and exploitative conditions. She described vending spaces as hostile environments characterised by police raids, confiscation of goods, extortion, and sexual harassment.

According to research findings presented during the symposium, some women vendors allegedly face pressure to exchange sexual favours for access to vending bays, protection from arrest or the return of confiscated merchandise.

“Women reported sex being demanded in exchange for avoiding arrest, recovering goods and accessing vending spaces,” Gwinji said.

The revelations have intensified calls for Zimbabwean lawmakers to formally recognise sextortion as a criminal offence under the country’s legal framework. Sextortion is widely defined as the abuse of power to obtain sexual favours and is increasingly being recognised globally as a form of corruption and gender-based violence.

Economic Inequality in Zimbabwe’s Informal Sector

The symposium also highlighted deep economic inequalities between men and women operating within Zimbabwe’s informal economy. Researchers found that women largely dominate low-income sectors such as vegetable vending, clothing sales, and fresh produce markets, while men tend to control more profitable trades involving electronics and technology products.

According to the findings, many women vendors reportedly earn less than US$100 per month after expenses, while men in higher-value sectors can earn between US$300 and US$1 200 monthly. Experts said the income disparity further exposes women to exploitation and financial vulnerability. The study additionally revealed that women vendors shoulder a disproportionate burden of unpaid care work, balancing trading activities with childcare responsibilities, household duties, and family care.

Experts Push for Legal Reform and Protection

Advocates at the symposium called for stronger legal safeguards to protect women traders from abuse and exploitation.

Recommendations included:

• Explicit criminalisation of sextortion in Zimbabwean law

• Anonymous reporting systems for victims

• Gender sensitivity training for police and municipal officers

• Improved accountability mechanisms within local authorities

Samuel Wadza of VISET said the organisation continues pushing for safer and more inclusive trading spaces for women in the informal economy. He said women vendors require access to clean water, ablution facilities, childcare centres and social protection programmes to improve working conditions. The report also called for expanded access to healthcare services, maternity support, affordable credit facilities, and stronger interventions against gender-based violence in marketplaces and vending areas. Women’s rights activists say addressing abuse in the informal sector is critical, especially as Zimbabwe’s struggling economy forces more citizens into informal trading for survival.

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