Opinion.
Recently, there was brouhaha over a condom TV commercial. The 'Weka Condom Mpangoni' commercial, produced by a consortium of organisations fighting HIV and AIDS, challenged married couples to either keep off extra marital affairs, popularly referred to as 'mpango wa kando,' or always use condoms to protect themselves and their families from the threat of HIV and AIDS.
Ironically, just weeks after the dust settled on the controversy, the Kenya National AIDS & STDs Control Programme (Nascop) released report indicating that a married person has twice as much chance of contracting HIV with a spouse than with a prostitute. According to the report, more than half of all new infections occur among married or steady partners compared to 14 per cent for prostitutes and 15 per cent for homosexuals and prisoners.
The increase in HIV infections among married and steady partners is likely due to low condom use. It should worry any policymaker and leader considering the devastating HIV and AIDS has on families, health care and the economy.
Whereas significant achievements have been made in the war against HIV and AIDS, it will take a while to 'get to zero' unless there is a change in attitude and human behaviour. One of this is obviously the low rate of condom use among married and steady partners who also happen to have other sexual relationships on the side. In a 2012 study, only 37 per cent reported using a condom with a non-paying client compared to 60 per cent among prostitutes.
