More than a million faulty condoms recalled in Uganda

The charity Marie Stopes International is recalling more than a million condoms in Uganda, after officials raised concerns that they were prone to breaking.

The charity began the recall of packets of Life Guard condoms after the National Drug Authority found they contained holes and did not meet quality standards. More than half of the affected products have since been recovered.

Marie Stopes Uganda, Uganda’s largest sexual and reproductive health organisation, supplies up to 2 million condoms across the country each month.

Uganda is one of 69 target countries in which the global partnership Family Planning 2020 is trying to increase access to contraception. About 30% of women use a modern form of contraception.

It is estimated that about 6% of Ugandans aged 15 to 49 are living with HIV, with women disproportionately affected by the virus, according to UNAids, the UN agency for tackling HIV. New HIV infections among young women aged 15 to 24 years were more than double those among young men.

Concerns were raised over two batches of the condoms, which each contained about 335,000 condom packs. Marie Stopes International said the manufacturer is approved by the UN Population Fund, the UN agency responsible for supporting family planning, and that products are tested at a World Health Organization lab before shipment.

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Dr Carole Sekimpi, country director for Marie Stopes Uganda, said in a statement: “We are urging anyone with a box of Life Guard to read the box and contact us if they believe it is from one of the affected batches.”

Distributors, pharmacies and other stockists have also been contacted by the charity.

“We take every measure possible to ensure that products are of the highest standard,” Marie Stopes International added in a statement. “We are working with the National Drug Authority in Uganda to urgently investigate what happened with these batches and ensure our products continue to meet the high standard of quality we and our clients expect.”