Some Ugandans Lack Money To Buy Condoms, Boiling Them For Reuse

Some people in Uganda who cannot afford to purchase condoms have started boiling used condoms with steam produced from cooking food in an attempt to sterilize and reuse them, Makerere University professor Sam Luboga said Saturday at the opening of the university's AIDS Actions Week, Uganda's Monitor reports. The conference, which will last through the week, is focusing on challenges the country faces in providing effective HIV/AIDS-related services. "We are promoting condom use, but do people have the money?" Luboga asked. "The people are poor, they resterilize condoms ... to use them again because they don't have money," he said, adding, "Poverty is their biggest problem." According to the Monitor, officials have praised Uganda for its aggressive efforts in fighting HIV/AIDS. "We should aim at high standard care for everyone. The technical quality on treatment depending on who you are is unfair," Luboga said. In addition, he said the country should address equitable health care among women and men because women have a higher risk of contracting HIV (Asiimwe, Monitor, 4/5).