Flavoured male condoms running short in Cape Town

CAPE TOWN: The demand for the new flavoured male condoms in Cape Town has outstripped the supplier's capacity, the city government says as it joins national efforts to highlight sexually transmitted infections (STIs) in a bid to reduce the rate of STI, including curbing the spread of HIV/AIDS.
The city's Member of the Mayoral Committee (MMC) for Safety and Security and Social Services, JP Smith, said here Sunday: "STI/Condom Week is marked annually on the South African health calendar. While many STIs can be treated some people feel uncomfortable accessing treatment for fear of being stigmatised."
He said city clinics offered education, advice, diagnosis, and treatment of STI and over a 12-month period, 41,153 new STI cases were treated, an average of 3,429 a month, slightly lower than the previous year's average of 3,599 a month.
"The drop in the number of sexually transmitted infections is not significant. Stigma remains a real challenge and there are people who refuse to seek help because they're concerned about attitudes and perceptions," Smith added.
In order too protect from STIs, male and female condoms were distributed free of charge at all clinics, with nearly 50 million male condoms and more than 1.5 million female condoms distributed over a 12-month period.
The distribution of male condoms in the public health sector had been a hot topic of late as research found that Choice brand condoms were losing their appeal and a bigger variety of options was sought. This led the national health department to introduce Max brand condoms in a range of scents and colours, such as strawberry, grape, and vanilla.
"The flavoured condom range is extremely popular, so much so that the service provider has been unable to keep up with demand. Currently, our clinics are out of stock and only expecting a new batch in the next week or two," Smith said.
"So, we appeal to the public to be responsible and abstain or use the plain Choice condoms in the meantime. Let safety and responsibility be the flavour of the month if vanilla or strawberry cannot." — Bernama