/ 17 May 1999

MILLIONS OF FAULTY CONDOMS STILL DISTRIBUTED

MOST of the nearly 40 million faulty condoms which South Africa’s health department said last July must be recalled are still being distributed, the Sunday Times reported. The Indian-manufactured Kenzo condoms, approved by the South African Bureau of Standards (SABS), were recalled after tests found one in four to be faulty. But the recall only netted 4.7 million of the condoms, a former consultant with the department told the newspaper, adding that they were still being distributed in the Free State and Gauteng provinces. There was no policy to inform the public about the faulty condoms, Deputy Director-General of Health Harm Pretorius said. An estimated 1500 people a day here are infected with the Human Immune-deficiency Virus (HIV), which can lead to Aids, according to official figures.