US Group Alleges Condom Crisis
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THE Centre for Health and Gender Equity (Change) in the United States of America has said Uganda has been facing a shortage of condoms for the last 10 months.
In an August 26 statement, Change’s Executive Director Jodi Jacobson said the shortage could endanger Uganda’s previously successful prevention efforts in the fight against HIV/Aids.
But the State Minister for Health (General Duties) Capt. Mike Mukula, told Daily Monitor yesterday that there are enough condoms to take the country beyond this year.
“We have enough condoms. We just procured 65 million condoms about two months ago and another 80 million is on the way, so there is no shortage of condoms in the country,“Mukula said by telephone yesterday.
He said in case there is a condom shortage, it’s the responsibility of the World Health Organisation to raise the alarm and not any orgnisation.
“That there is a condom shortage in the country is just a rumour by people who want to spoil the image of this country. I challenge anyone who says we do not have condoms to come and I show them our stores,“Mukula said.
He said the country uses about five million condoms monthly and with a well stocked store, there is no cause for fear that there are no condoms.
However, Change said in the statement that even with the crisis at hand, there are no signs the government is resolving the matter.
The statement further said that condoms have become difficult to find in cities, even for a price and are unavailable in many rural areas.
It said the worst hit group of people by the condoms shortage are the internally displaced people in camps and other people who are desperate to prevent HIV/Aids infection, and have resorted to using garbage bags as condom substitutes.
But Mukula said if there was a crisis the government would be the first to act on the matter.
He said he will be touring camps of internally displaced people starting next week and challenged those who are alleging that IDPs are using garbage bags as condom substitutes to come along with him to the camps to prove their claims.
The statement attributed the condom shortage among others to the country’s “abstinence only” campaigns which are largely funded by the United States government and are reducing access to and undermining public confidence in condoms as a tool for prevention of both HIV/Aids and un intended pregnancies in Uganda and other countries as well.
“The concerted effort to undermine public confidence in condoms, supported in part by US funding comes at a time when funding for comprehensive prevention programmes is undergoing a profound and dangerous shift.
Due to shifts in prevention funding, those at greatest risk are being denied the information and technologies necessary to prevent infection,“Jacobson said.
The statement said the recalling of the Engabu condom brand in October 2004 after it was found to be of poor quality also reduced supplies of condom on the market and that despite tests carried out to confirm the acceptability of the quality, “public confidence in the brand was destroyed.”
Mukula however said the condom brand on the market is now the Life Guard, which come in blue and pink colours with the blue one being distributed for free while the pink brand is sold at a subsidised price.
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