NEWS
Moe female condoms, but cost makes them difficult to afford
The South African government has allocated $5.2 million to increase the distribution of the female condoms to accelerate HIV prevention efforts in the country.
Department of health spokesperson, Sibani Mngadi, said: “Our determination to address the gender dimension of HIV and Aids requires that we make deliberate efforts to empower women to protect themselves from HIV infection and the female condom is one of the tools the department of health is making available.”
He said that measures to prevent HIV required cooperation and mutual respect between partners for them to be effective.
Mngadi said his department is determined to put more resources in the marketing and free distribution of female condoms although they are 36 times more expensive than the male condoms.
He said the department pays 22c for a male condom while female condoms cost R8 each.
According to the South African National HIV Survey of 2005, it was estimated that 10.8% of all South Africans over 2 years old were living with HIV. Among those between 15 and 49 years old, the estimated prevalence was 16.2%.
The study made by the department of health in 2005 based on its sample of 16 510 women attending 399 antenatal clinics across the country’s nine provinces, estimated that 30.2% of pregnant women were living with HIV. The highest HIV rates were in Kwazulu-Natal, Mpumalanga and Gauteng.

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