Zimbabwean minister criticizes Chinese condoms as too small
A Chinese manufacturer says it is considering making condoms in more sizes after receiving negative feedback from Zimbabwean government officials.
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| Customers choose condoms at a store in China. Photo: AFP |
Zimbabwe's Health Minister David Parirenyatwa recently complained that condoms manufactured in China and exported to Zimbabwe were so small that men in the southern African country could not use them, according to Hong Kong's South China Morning Post on March 1.
This "laughable" complaint was made by Mr. Parirenyatwa at an event held in the capital Harare last week to promote the campaign against HIV/AIDS.
"Southern Africa has the highest HIV infection rate and we are promoting condom use. Young people now have a special condom that they want, but we don't produce it. We import condoms from China and some people complain that they are too small," Mr Parirenyatwa said at the event.
Zimbabwe's health minister added that Zimbabwean companies need to take up condom production instead of relying on imports.
Upon hearing the news, Zhao Chuan, CEO of Da Xiang condom manufacturing company in Beijing, said the company is planning to produce condoms in more sizes.
“Because of the different demands from customers like Zimbabwe, Da Xiang, as a Chinese manufacturer, has the ability and responsibility to contribute. Therefore, we have started some user data surveys in the region to prepare for the production of more multi-size products in the future,” Zhao informed.
Da Xiang’s CEO said that customers around the world have different demands. Chinese men tend to prefer thinner condoms while not worrying about size, while North American customers prefer more flexible condoms, according to Zhao.
Zimbabwe is one of the sub-Saharan African countries worst affected by HIV/AIDS, with an estimated 13.5% of adults infected with the virus.
Therefore, the use of condoms is a necessary solution to prevent infection. According to local media reports, Zimbabwe has become one of the top 5 condom importers in the world.
Meanwhile, China is one of the world's largest condom manufacturers, according to the National Health and Family Planning Commission of China. China has about 300 condom manufacturers, with about 3 billion condoms produced each year.
