Condom shortage worries fishermen 

Fishermen at Kigungu landing site in Entebbe Municipality, Wakiso District are concerned that cases of HIV/AIDs and other sexually transmitted diseases may increase following a shortage of condoms at the landing site.
The condom crisis is attributed to sex workers who pick the condoms from health centers and other public places and sell them at a high price.

“Sex workers have a tendency of picking condoms from health centers and other public places where they are put and when we go there, we don’t find them. They normally sell them between Shs5,000 and Shs10,000, which makes it hard for us to buy because it is costly to buy a sex worker and also buy condoms which are meant to be free and that puts our lives at risk,” said Mr Robert Mukisa, a fisherman at the landing site while receiving condoms from Family Medical Point (FMP) during  a Women’s day outreach at the landing site on Friday, March 8, 2024.

“Some of our colleagues promoted the idea that women who take too much ‘Bushera’ don’t get infected with HIV because it gives them adequate lubrication, but this has in the end led to many of our colleagues getting infected with HIV. Now that the FMP has given condoms to each individual, we are going to keep our lives safe, they will prevent us from getting infected with HIV and Gonorrhea. Now I feel safe and nothing can stop me from making love,’’ said Emmanuel Muwanguzi, another Fisherman.

Ms Polyne Nabwire, Head of Programs and Communications at FMP said the outreach was intended to promote access to inclusive, comprehensive, confidential, and rights-based sexual and reproductive health services for all individuals in Kigungu landing site, particularly women and fishermen.”
Mr Medi Kayidali, who works as part of  the Village Health Team (VHT) at Kigungu Village condemned sex workers for picking condoms from public places and inflating the prices yet some of them are supposed to be free of charge.

“We are taking action against these sex workers and if anyone is caught, the law shall take its course,” he said.
Mr Chedikol Enock, a clinician with FMP said they attend to 300 women monthly at Kigungu landing site, giving them reproductive health services.
“The truth is there is a high rate of HIV infection at landing sites. It is always a hiding place for a lot of people so you find a lot of sex activities” he said.

In Uganda, women are disproportionately affected by HIV. Out of 1.4 million people living with the disease, 860 000 are women and 80 000 are children, according to World Health Organisation (WHO).
New HIV infections have been reduced by 59% since the peak in 1995. In 2022, 1.3 million [1 million–1.7 million] people were newly infected with HIV, compared to 3.2 million [2.5 million–4.3 million] people in 1995. Women and girls accounted for 46% of all new infections in 2022.