Durban - Fewer young people find it necessary to wear a condom, a UK study has revealed, and it appears the same is true of the young in South Africa.
Reasons for this include cultural norms, acceptability of condom use and accessibility to condoms.
Dr Chakanga Banda, a senior technical advisor for adolescent and youth friendly services for LoveLife South Africa, says that although young people know a lot about HIV and condom use as a method of prevention, a lot of work still needs to be done to ensure the acceptability of condom use.
“In most South African communities it is still not acceptable for an adolescent, especially girls, to be found in possession of condoms, yet this is the most vulnerable group of the population. There are also perceptions about fertility. Among school-leavers, the next best thing to a school certificate is to have a baby.
“There is a sense of self-esteem and even community pressure for a girl to prove she is fertile. This pressure and need to prove fertility extends to some (teenagers who are still at school),” he said.
Another problem is that in most peri-urban and rural communities, condoms are only available in public health centres. Shops are unlikely to stock condoms because they are not in high demand.
In some cases, teenagers do not want to buy condoms from the shops because they are known to the shopkeepers, who may tell their parents. Condoms are also expensive, and even those people who do have access to them may not consider them a priority on a limited budget.
“On the other hand, condoms in public healthcare facilities are usually not accessible because of the poor attitudes and ignorance of the staff with regard to ensuring that youngsters have the privacy they need when acquiring condoms,” said Banda.
He said that while there are projects and initiatives under way to encourage the use of condoms, a study is still needed to check the effectiveness of these approaches with regard to condom acceptability and use.
The UK study revealed young people’s mentality was that they did not need to wear condoms because they were not prone to diseases such as HIV and Aids or other sexually transmitted infections (STI), but Banda thinks local youngsters learn from experience.
“It is a remote concept to young people to teach them about HIV and STIs when they have not (experienced either) or come into close contact with someone who has.
“The approach so far has been on passing key messages on HIV and STIs and less on interactive discussions,” Banda said.
He believes that a more interactive approach should be taken,suggesting that HIV-positive people share their experiences with other youngsters.
In this way the concept of HIV and STIs will stop being a remote concept to the young people who are not infected.
”In a study done by LoveLife and the HSRC (Human Sciences Research Council), it was noticed that young men report close to 100 percent condom use with their most recent casual partners, but condom use overall is inconsistent,” said Banda.
After these results, flavoured condoms were distributed to schools and tertiary institutions.
“There has been a lot of interest in the flavoured condoms among young people. The feeling among young people is that they are a “cool” and “chic” product, but whether this will translate to acceptability and more consistent use remains to be seen as this is a relatively new product.
“There are other variables that impact on condom use that have to be taken into consideration,” said Banda.
He added that the approach government has taken in making sure young people use condoms are just recommended approaches.
“We are a country with a unique culture and unique youth dynamics. We need to give due cognisance to this fact and create approaches to health information that suit our context.
“It is only when we can craft these approaches that we are going to achieve the desired optimal condom use within our communities,” said Banda.
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Sunday Tribune