New HIV infections rise as condom use among youth declines
Minister of Health Dr Stephen Modise has raised alarm over rising new HIV infections among young people and their growing reluctance to use condoms.
The Minister revealed at the World AIDS Day commemoration in Kanye that last year alone, about 4,120 people were estimated to have contracted new HIV infections in Botswana.
He said statistics indicate that about 1,118 , roughly 27% were adolescent girls and young women aged between 15 and 24
“What we find even more concerning is the fact that condom use among our younger population is lower,” he stated.
In an interview with The Voice, Kabo Ngombe, Principal Information, Education and Communications Officer responsible for Condom Programming at the National AIDS & Health Promotion Agency (NAHPA), echoed Dr. Modise’s concerns.
She referenced the Botswana AIDS Impact Survey (BAIS), which showed condom use among adolescents and young people stood at 78% in 2008, fell to 65% in 2013, and rose modestly to 75.2% in 2021. “It’s an increase, but it is still considered low, given that condoms are one of the cheapest methods for HIV prevention, STI prevention and unwanted pregnancies,” she said.
Ngombe added that the numbers are worrisome because Botswana still battles a high HIV prevalence, and many adolescents and young people find themselves having unprotected sexual intercourse with partners whose HIV status is unknown.
Turning to key populations, she noted that condom use among female sex workers dropped from 61% in 2012 to 47% in 2017, while for men who have sex with other men it slipped from 77.5% in 2012 to 69.4% in 2017. “During the analysis, the key groups highlighted several barriers, inadequate access to condoms after hours, especially for sex workers, a simple dislike of using condoms and frequent bursts, particularly reported by men who have sex with men, another reason always brought up is condom fatigue after months with the same partner, leading many to stop using them altogether,” she revealed.
Ngombe also spoke about the recent introduction of five condom flavours being chocolate, tutti‑frutti, strawberry, plain and mint, remarking that chocolate and mint were the least picked and often left behind. “We are trying by all means to do social contracts with different communities through the civil societies we are working with, such as BOFWA, to roll out condom topics to the general public. Hopefully we will be able to turn the tide,” she concluded.
