To browse Academia. Data was collected form high school students in Maputo, Mozambique. Using a combination of focus group discussions, interviews and informal conversations, it was possible to identify that one major obstacle to the use of condoms was young people's belief that they did not have to use condoms in steady relationships built on love and trust.
Trust and love provide a sense of immunity to infection. Students' understandings of pleasure, lack of accurate information, lack of sex education at home and at school, and gender inequalities further contribute to making condom use a difficult issue.
There should be a change in focus in condom campaigns. Efforts should also be made to encourage young people to 'emotionally invest' in their health by using condoms. Sahara J-journal of Social Aspects of Hiv-aids, Studies have found that there has been an increase in condom usage by some categories of the population, but usage has not yet reached the desired levels in order to meet the target.
The main aim was to assess accessibility to condoms, and knowledge, attitudes and practices around condom use by four sampled communities in the North West Province. HIV prevalence in central Mozambique is the highest in the country with high urban rates impacting on the rural areas. Being male, married, educated, and having genital discharge and ulcers in the last year were significantly associated with risky sexual activity.
Risky behaviour was significantly associated with being Catholic or Protestant when compared with those from Zionist churches. Attitudes and behaviour were influenced by cultural and religious involvement, as well as sex and marital status. It is imperative that prevention strategies take into account the cultural, economic and religious conditions present in rural African settings to create HIV prevention programmes that are culturally relevant and acceptable to the participants.
