BULAWAYO has been hit by a shortage of Marvelon, a birth control pill which experts say had less side effects compared to other methods of contraception.

In a survey conducted by Chronicle in Bulawayo yesterday, most pharmacies said they ran out of Marvelon stocks about two weeks ago.

A local pharmacist said they no longer had it in stock. A source within the ZNFPC said existing stock of Marvelon birth control pills expire in August this year and chances of getting new stock were slim.

“The pill was introduced on temporary basis to meet demand and now women will have to use other control pills available.”

ZNFPC introduced Marvelon in 2015 to complement the Control Pill following donors’ failure to procure the latter at the end of 2014. Marvelon is a monophasic pill and each of the 21 tablets has the same dose of hormones in it.

When it was launched in 2015 health officials said Marvelon was one of the most reliable methods of contraception on correct usage.