Female condom introduced in Malawi

Malawian women are now ready to embrace more power as they make sexual reproductive health decisions through the introduction of female condoms on the rather conservative Malawian market.

Sandra Mapemba, National FC Programming Coordinator for the Reproductive Health Unit (RHU), a department in the Ministry of Health, told Africa News prospects looked good for this new protective measure.

"We have been overwhelmed by demand, women asking us about female condoms. This indicates to us that people are ready," said Mapemba.

Asked why it has taken so long for female condoms to be introduced on the market, Mapemba, who works for the RHU but is paid by the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) as a sign of the United Nations agency's commitment to up-lifting the decision making capacity of women in sexual relationships, said her office had been working on quality assurance.

This, she said, is to ensure that when female condoms are widely available, service providers should have thorough knowledge, users fully aware of what is expected of them, and the nation's acceptance rates of the product sky-high.

So far this seems to have been achieved, as female condoms can now be found at K30.00 on the market. This entails a packet of two condoms
.
Why two condoms in a packet for women, and three for men? "Well, the difference is strategic," enthuses Mapemba."The male condom is prone to many mistakes; drunkards may wear them wrongly, or they may leak, or else they may burst in case of sex without proper fore-play hence three condoms in a packet. The female condom is good; it doesn't break or what. So, two is too good for the needed protection."