Exploring African Indigenous Knowledge, Beliefs and Practices on Reproductive Health: A Case Study of Allandale Women in Mpumalanga

Abstract

This study explored African indigenous knowledge, beliefs and practices on reproductive health among women in the Mpumalanga province of South Africa. Women sexual and reproductive health in many African indigenous communities, like Allandale village, is an ongoing sensitive issue that is difficult to discuss in many contexts. As such, information, knowledge and practices relating to women reproductive health is shrouded in obscurity through religion, tradition and culture and no wonder why many rural women, including the girl-child, are left vulnerable. The study argues that little and/or no logical information exists on women reproductive health written from an African indigenous perspective. The study used three theories in exploring traditional medicine and its impact on reproductive health of rural women; Afrocentricity, Appreciative Inquiry approach and ethnomedical approach. The study adopted the qualitative research design since it sought to understand knowledge that was within indigenous communities. The researcher chose Allandale as the interview site due to its abundance of traditional medicine and the presence of traditional healers specializing in reproductive health. Indigenous women (18-50 years), traditional healers (diviner, traditional birth attendant, herbalist, traditional surgeon and faith healer) and elderly women (60 years and above) participated in the study. The study findings provided a panoramic view of a wide contextual analysis of reproductive health issues from an indigenous perspective. Most of the respondents perceived indigenous knowledge practices as efficacious in the preventive, promotive and curative aspect of reproductive health, with some key testimonials undergirding these views. The centrality of taboos, herbs, ceremonies, rituals and observance of social norms demonstrated the vantage point which indigenous knowledge occupied as it straddled the physical, biological social and spiritual aspects of diagnoses, prognosis, treatment, promotion and prevention of reproductive maladies that affected women. Based on the findings and conclusions, this study proposes the adoption of an African Indigenous Knowledge Framework on women's reproductive health.