Hwange court orders woman to refund US$2,500 after DNA test proves non-paternity

A court in Hwange has ordered a woman to repay US$2,500 in child maintenance to her former partner after a DNA test confirmed he is not the biological father of the child. The case, involving Clean Nyathi of Dete and his former partner Cynthia Dube, highlights growing disputes in Zimbabwe over paternity, maintenance payments, and the legal weight of DNA evidence.

Nyathi told B-Metro he sought a DNA test after years of paying maintenance under mounting doubts about the child’s paternity.

“This whole issue started in 2014. I always suspected the child was not mine, which is why I kept pushing for a DNA test,” he said.

According to Nyathi, Dube initially refused to undergo testing multiple times, raising further suspicion. He eventually paid around US$450 for the DNA test, which excluded him as the father.

“I have been paying maintenance for years starting at US$40, then US$50, then US$60. All that time, I was supporting a child who is not mine,” he said.

Legal experts say such disputes are becoming more common as access to DNA testing improves in Zimbabwe.

Family law practitioner Advocate Thabani Mpofu said courts increasingly rely on scientific evidence in maintenance disputes.

“DNA evidence provides definitive answers in paternity cases and can overturn long-standing assumptions that previously guided maintenance orders,” he explained.

Following the DNA results, the court ruled that Dube must repay US$2,500, the estimated total Nyathi paid in maintenance over the years. However, Dube said the ruling has left her financially strained.

“I do not have the means to raise that money within seven days as ordered,” she said, describing the judgment as a major setback.

She added that she had been in another relationship at the time she met Nyathi and later moved in with him after her then-partner became violent.

“By the time I moved in, I was already pregnant,” she said.

Under Zimbabwean law, maintenance obligations are typically based on presumed or acknowledged paternity, but courts can revisit rulings if new evidence emerges. Legal analyst Alex Magaisa has previously noted that DNA testing is reshaping family law.

“Scientific evidence has introduced a level of certainty that courts cannot ignore, particularly in disputes involving parental responsibility,” he said.

However, some social commentators warn that such cases can have complex consequences for children.

Sociologist Tafadzwa Ruzive said: “While the law focuses on financial responsibility, there is also an emotional dimension. Children may be affected by the sudden withdrawal of a father figure.”

Nyathi said he is not immediately pursuing repayment but may return to court if the money is not paid.

“If I don’t get it, I will eventually take the matter back to court,” he said.

The case underscores the importance of early paternity verification, particularly in maintenance disputes, as well as the legal risks associated with misattributed parenthood.

Zimbabwe paternity dispute