RWANDA: New campaign to boost condom use
The Rwanda government has been working on a program to provide male and female condoms to their people at a much lower cost, helping to prevent the spread of sexually transmitted diseases.
Studies show that sexually active people in Rwanda only use an average of three condoms a year. The program should last approximately three months and began in December of 2009. The primary focus will be on high risk individuals such as people who work in the sex industry or unhappy couples.
Currently condoms are available at reduced costs for males and free for females. The male condoms cost much less than a loaf of bread. Researchers have found that many people complain that the condoms are breaking which leads them to believe that the people using the condoms could benefit from better training on how to use them properly.
Another issue they are having when trying to get people to use them is the fact that condoms are still associated with promiscuous behaviors which tends to have people from stable relationships balk at the idea of using them. Also, they are more difficult to come by for people that live in rural areas.
Some of the cultures in Rwanda also are firm believers in women being submissive which causes a great deal of issues when related to the use of the female condoms. It then lies with the male to make the decision on whether or not to use protection. In 2006, the Ministry of Health reported distributing over 830 thousand male condoms and only a little over 2400 of the female condoms.
The government hopes that the distribution of free condoms and reduced cost condoms will help reduce the infections by up to 50 percent however it will be important to also educate the people on safe sex practices such as abstinence and consistent condom use, as well as maintaining faithfulness to just one partner.
Tags: safe sex