KENYA: Walking 26km for a condom

[Guest guest]

KENYA: Walking 26km for a condom

NAROK, 2 December 2010 (PLUSNEWS) - Correct and consistent condom use

is one of the bedrocks of Kenya's HIV/AIDS prevention programme but

many people in rural areas have limited access to condoms.

  " Condoms are good and I use them with girls - they have taught us how

to use them. but here in the rural area there is a problem because we

walk very far to get the condoms, " said Lemeo Ntalel, a 21-year-old

Maasai moran - warrior - in rural Narok, in Kenya's Rift Valley. " At

times you want to use one and you don't have it near so you just do it

with a girl without it; it is hard to tell a girl 'wait for me I am

going to get a condom', because she will lose interest and go. "

 Ntalel has to walk to Narok sub-district hospital, 26km away, to fetch condoms.

 Jactone Lelei - a peer educator who trains his fellow morans on the

need to use condoms - says the demand is so high that he and his

colleagues have started stocking condoms along with their education

materials as they go around the community spreading the word about

HIV.

  " We have to walk with them so that as we sensitize people to use

them, we also give the condoms out. I also keep some in my house so if

they want, they just call me and I give them, " he told IRIN/PlusNews.

" At least it helps a little. the lack of easy access gives people an

opportunity to give excuses for not using them. "

 He noted that many rural residents could not afford to or chose not

to buy condoms - not considered a necessity - so stocking them in

local shops did not really improve access.

 More awareness than use

  Muraguri, head of the National AIDS and Sexually transmitted

infections Control Programme, NASCOP, said intense condom education by

both the government and NGOs had seen awareness outpace access.

  " We can now say knowledge and awareness about condoms both in rural

and urban areas could be in the region of above 90 percent. However,

access to these condoms has been hampered by procurement and funding

challenges. KEMSA [the Kenya Medical Supplies Agency] which procures,

can only distribute to provincial- and district-level health

facilities and not many people have access to these levels of

facilities so yes, this hampers access, " he said.

 Erratic funding and supply chain problems have led to fluctuations in

condom distribution over the years; in 2008, the government

distributed 15.3 million condoms nationally, against a demand from

21.6 million people. According to the UNAIDS Modes of Transmission

Analysis [

http://www.unaidsrstesa.org/files/u1/Kenya_MoT_Country_Synthesis_Report_22Mar09.\

pdf

] 2008, condom distribution is very low generally and very unequal,

ranging from almost negligible in remote northeastern Kenya to a high

of 1.65 condoms per person per year in Western Province.

 Poor placement

 Ineffective condom placement can also hinder access, according to

Leshore, coordinator of Pastoralist Health Network, a local NGO

based in Narok. " There is awareness about condom use but people still

fear going to where the condom dispensers are [health centres] to pick

them because they think people will think they are immoral or because

they believe the culture does not allow condom use. "

 According to Dofa Abdi, AIDS and sexually transmitted infections

control officer in the rural northern district of Samburu, government

condoms are often kept at the chief's camp, to which many young men

are reluctant to venture.

  " So other than promoting awareness and increasing availability, it is

good to reduce the stigma associated with the condom, " Leshore added.

 Despite shyness, condoms in health centres do go fast. " If you can

determine demand by how many people pick the condoms from here, then

it is good - but then picking and using are two different things. if

they are picking and using then we are doing well, " said Linnet

Kerubo, a nursing officer at Narok District Hospital.

 NASCOP's Muraguri says high levels of awareness and demand for

condoms mean the government must increase access.

  " People are ready now more than they were a few years ago to use

condoms and the government must and will put efforts into ensuring

they are made available to those who need them because it is their

right to have them, " he said. " We don't want people to say we want

them and we can't get them. "

 ko/kr/mw[END]

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[This item comes to you from PlusNews, part of IRIN, the humanitarian

news and analysis service of the UN Office for the Coordination of

Humanitarian Affairs. The opinions expressed do not necessarily

reflect those of the United Nations or its Member States. Reposting or

reproduction, with attribution, for non-commercial purposes is

permitted. Terms and conditions:

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[Guest guest]

KENYA: Walking 26km for a condom

NAROK, 2 December 2010 (PLUSNEWS) - Correct and consistent condom use

is one of the bedrocks of Kenya's HIV/AIDS prevention programme but

many people in rural areas have limited access to condoms.

  " Condoms are good and I use them with girls - they have taught us how

to use them. but here in the rural area there is a problem because we

walk very far to get the condoms, " said Lemeo Ntalel, a 21-year-old

Maasai moran - warrior - in rural Narok, in Kenya's Rift Valley. " At

times you want to use one and you don't have it near so you just do it

with a girl without it; it is hard to tell a girl 'wait for me I am

going to get a condom', because she will lose interest and go. "

 Ntalel has to walk to Narok sub-district hospital, 26km away, to fetch condoms.

 Jactone Lelei - a peer educator who trains his fellow morans on the

need to use condoms - says the demand is so high that he and his

colleagues have started stocking condoms along with their education

materials as they go around the community spreading the word about

HIV.

  " We have to walk with them so that as we sensitize people to use

them, we also give the condoms out. I also keep some in my house so if

they want, they just call me and I give them, " he told IRIN/PlusNews.

" At least it helps a little. the lack of easy access gives people an

opportunity to give excuses for not using them. "

 He noted that many rural residents could not afford to or chose not

to buy condoms - not considered a necessity - so stocking them in

local shops did not really improve access.

 More awareness than use

  Muraguri, head of the National AIDS and Sexually transmitted

infections Control Programme, NASCOP, said intense condom education by

both the government and NGOs had seen awareness outpace access.

  " We can now say knowledge and awareness about condoms both in rural

and urban areas could be in the region of above 90 percent. However,

access to these condoms has been hampered by procurement and funding

challenges. KEMSA [the Kenya Medical Supplies Agency] which procures,

can only distribute to provincial- and district-level health

facilities and not many people have access to these levels of

facilities so yes, this hampers access, " he said.

 Erratic funding and supply chain problems have led to fluctuations in

condom distribution over the years; in 2008, the government

distributed 15.3 million condoms nationally, against a demand from

21.6 million people. According to the UNAIDS Modes of Transmission

Analysis [

http://www.unaidsrstesa.org/files/u1/Kenya_MoT_Country_Synthesis_Report_22Mar09.\

pdf

] 2008, condom distribution is very low generally and very unequal,

ranging from almost negligible in remote northeastern Kenya to a high

of 1.65 condoms per person per year in Western Province.

 Poor placement

 Ineffective condom placement can also hinder access, according to

Leshore, coordinator of Pastoralist Health Network, a local NGO

based in Narok. " There is awareness about condom use but people still

fear going to where the condom dispensers are [health centres] to pick

them because they think people will think they are immoral or because

they believe the culture does not allow condom use. "

 According to Dofa Abdi, AIDS and sexually transmitted infections

control officer in the rural northern district of Samburu, government

condoms are often kept at the chief's camp, to which many young men

are reluctant to venture.

  " So other than promoting awareness and increasing availability, it is

good to reduce the stigma associated with the condom, " Leshore added.

 Despite shyness, condoms in health centres do go fast. " If you can

determine demand by how many people pick the condoms from here, then

it is good - but then picking and using are two different things. if

they are picking and using then we are doing well, " said Linnet

Kerubo, a nursing officer at Narok District Hospital.

 NASCOP's Muraguri says high levels of awareness and demand for

condoms mean the government must increase access.

  " People are ready now more than they were a few years ago to use

condoms and the government must and will put efforts into ensuring

they are made available to those who need them because it is their

right to have them, " he said. " We don't want people to say we want

them and we can't get them. "

 ko/kr/mw[END]

CLICK ON LINK BELOW TO READ THE REPORT ONLINE

Http://www.plusnews.org/report.aspx?ReportID=91265

Follow us on Twitter! http://twitter.com/plusnews

© IRIN. All rights reserved. HIV/AIDS news and analysis: http://www.plusnews.org

[This item comes to you from PlusNews, part of IRIN, the humanitarian

news and analysis service of the UN Office for the Coordination of

Humanitarian Affairs. The opinions expressed do not necessarily

reflect those of the United Nations or its Member States. Reposting or

reproduction, with attribution, for non-commercial purposes is

permitted. Terms and conditions:

http://www.irinnews.org/copyright.aspx