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Declining condom donations are inhibiting efforts to fight HIV/AIDS in the developing world, the New York Times reports. Annual donations of condoms to the world's poorest countries have declined from 970 million to 950 million in the last 10 years, according to the United Nations Population Fund.
Many factors have contributed to the condom donation shortage, such as a lack of public discussion of the situation, changing foreignn aid priorities, laws that increase prices, distribution problems in poor countries and religious resistance, the Times reports. In particular, U.S. donations have declined - from 800 million condoms in 1990 to 360 million in 2000 -- because several major condom recipients "became ineligible" for foreign aid because of wars and coups and because "buy-American laws" increased condom prices. The United Nations and European aid agencies have increased their donations to cover the shortage, but donations remain "deeply inadequate," the Times reports. UNFPA estimates that developing nations need 10 billion condoms annually and could need up to twice that amount by 2015. In addition to condoms, developing countries require $1.2 billion for distribution and education campaigns to dispel "widely accepted rumors" that all condoms contain the AIDS virus and that the wrong size condom will injure the penis, as well as to dispell the association of condom use with prostitution and "dirty sex." Public health officials hope to make condoms as easily accessible and "widely distributed" as other products in the "smallest village shop in Africa or Asia." Terri Barlett, vice president of Population Action International, said, "Cigarettes can get to the most remote corners of the world. So should condoms" (McNeil, New York Times, 10/9). Swaziland: Chastity Rite (Abstinence) Critiqued as HIV/AIDS Prevention Jabulane Matsebula, a spokesperson for the Peoples United Democratic Movement of Swaziland, on Friday questioned the effectiveness of King Mswati III's reinstatement of the "Umcwasho" chastity rite as a means of HIV/AIDS prevention, the Panafrican News Agency reports (Panafrican News Agency, 10/8). Mswati in September 2001 announced the resurrection of the event to "preserve virginity among girls and combat AIDS" (Kaiser Daily HIV/AIDS Report, 9/17/01). Men are barred from having sex with women who have undergone the rite and could be fined or "ostracized as morally deviant" for violating the prohibition. However, the rite does nothing to prevent men from having sex with women who have not undergone it, Matsebula said, adding, "Thus, even if Umcwasho is scrupulously observed, it can at best result in behavior change for only a section of the Swazi population and for a period of time." Matsebula said that effective HIV/AIDS prevention "requires behavior change over a longer term in a larger proportion of the population and usually involves a wider attitudinal range" (Panafrican News Agency, 10/8). Global Fund to Fight AIDS to Begin Distribution by Year's End
The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, which has received $2.1 billion in pledges from governments, corporations and individuals, plans to distribute its first grants by the end of the year, according to the Associated Press. Richard Feachem, Global Fund director, said the fund has so far received only one-quarter of the pledged sum but that the amount should be enough to pay for the first round of grants. Tanzania, Ghana, Sri Lanka and Haiti will be among the first of the 40 nations that will receive $630 million in aid over the next two years (Associated Press, 10/7).
The grant money in Haiti will be used for "comprehensive HIV care programs" and the provision of antiretroviral drugs. In Ghana, where fewer than 12 HIV-positive individuals currently receive treatment, the funding will be used to provide treatment for "thousands" of HIV-positive individuals, according to a Global Fund spokesperson (Reed, Bloomberg News, 10/6). In addition, Tanzania will receive $17.4 million to control the spread of HIV and malaria (Panafrican News Agency, 10/8). Feachem earlier this week announced that the Global Fund would enlist the assistance of auditing firms KPMG, Crown Agents and PriceWaterhouseCoopers to speed up the initial fund disbursement, reduce bureaucracy and paperwork and monitor the effectiveness of the funded programs (Panafrican News Agency, 10/8). This summary is from the Kaiser Daily HIV/AIDS Report http://www.kaisernetwork.org/dailyreports/hiv provided by kaisernetwork.org), a free health policy news summary and webcasting service of The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. The Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report is published for kaisernetwork.org by National Journal Group Inc. © 2002 by National Journal Group Inc. and Kaiser Family Foundation. All rights reserved |
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