Adopting the Female Condom in Kenya and Brazil: Perspectives of Women and Men

Microbicides were anticipated as a means to give women greater freedom from risk of HIV infection by empowering them to protect themselves against a pandemic which continues to render women vulnerable. The results of a critical study reported by Family Health International (FHI) in February, 1997 showed that while microbicides are indeed the ideal option for women, these remain a distant goal not likely to be reached in the near future. JoAnn Lewis, Senior Vice President for Reproductive Health at FHI noted at the Conference on the Female Condom held in May, that currently the female condom offers women the most immediate protection against HIV/STDs.

This document is a synthesis of the results of the exploratory single study executed in Brazil and Kenya, The Female Condom as a Woman-Controlled Protective Method. The full research reports from which this synthesis is derived were prepared by the principle investigators in Kenya and Brazil, respectively.