Once beloved Lorato falls from grace

Sharon Mathala | Friday June 5, 2015 14:59

 

“It breaks easily”. “It smells”. “It has resulted in unplanned pregnancies”.

The Lorato brand of condoms has become the most detested in the 13 brands currently circulating in the local market.

According to available data, as recently as two years ago, the government brands, Lorato, Carex and Sekwata enjoyed an 85 percent market share and boasted being accessible to “users in hard ­to ­reach and informal locations such as shebeens, cattle posts, and high density multi-residential homes”.

However, events at this week’s Public Accounts Committee hearing indicated the extent to which Lorato has lost its lustre.

National AIDS Coordinating Agency (NACA) coordinator, Grace Muzila told legislators that the discontinuation of the Lorato brand was on the horizon,  “following numerous grievances that the condoms are of poor quality, tend to break during intercourse and have an unpleasant smell”.

“Since we are aware of the public concerns, we are acting accordingly. Some people have no problem with Lorato condoms, but most say that they are of poor quality,” she said.

She said for now the condoms remain in distribution although government has put measures in place to provide a better replacement.

The NACA boss noted that the Lorato brand has passed several technical assessments.

However, it is clear the brand has not passed the public preference assessment, judging by the responses to a snap online survey conducted by Mmegi yesterday afternoon. Judging by the responses, it is clear that condom choice is an extremely personal decision as the brands come in many different colours, flavours, textures, lengths, widths, and thicknesses.

Given its role in sensual affairs, it is important that condom preference is a decision many users take very seriously.

Choosing the wrong one, they say, could mean the difference between horrible sex and great sex and even impact relationships, especially where unplanned pregnancies occur.

According to one respondent, Freddy Otumi, the brand has no durability.

“Lorato condoms are not safe as they easily burst. They have a bad smell, even though they give a good sensation during sexual intercourse.

“They also do not fit well and that is why at times they get deposited in the female’s genitals or it breaks because it’s either tight or too loose,” he said.

Another user, Nkomo, is of the view that the smell is a total turn-off, as the odour is “hard to get off one’s hands”.  “The unpleasant smell remains in the blankets for too long. My preferred condom brand is Lovers Plus because it is rightly scented and the size and thickness are superb as well,” Nkomo said.

For, Mokheche Sedodoma, who confessed to having used the Lorato brand two weeks ago, the issue is the smell. “I don’t think anyone likes using this condom. The Botswana Defence Force condom called Sekwata is the best in the market,” according to Sedodoma. 

One Bakani is sure the condom has increased the number of unintended pregnancies as it breaks easily, while Lassie Brian said whenever he used Lorato, “it either burst or got stuck”.

“The freely distributed ones, those not branded, are the strongest though not comfortable. They seem to be safer than any sold condoms followed by Sekwata,” he said.

And it is not only the heterosexuals who have issues with the Lorato brand.

In a Ministry of Health study, one respondent classified as a ‘Men who have sex with Men’ (MSM) cited Lorato as one reason for low condom use.

“Negative experiences about Lorato condoms is a hard situation,” the participant said. 

Lorato’s unpopularity, however, has not dampened overall condom use among the general public.

According to the preliminary results of the Botswana Impact Survey of 2013, condom use with people aged between 15 and 24, was found to be 99.5 percent every time they had sex with non-regular partners in the 12 months preceding the survey.

However, the percentage of persons engaged in commercial sex (clients and providers) reporting the use of a condom with their most recent client decreased from 88.7 percent in 2008, to 86.2 percent in 2013.

A PSI International study conducted between November 2012 and November 2013 found that 30.4 million condoms were sold or distributed in Botswana in 2012 up from 19.4 million five years before that. At that level, the number of condoms sold in 2012 was more than 15 times the country’s population.

The figures are also reflected in PSI Botswana data for May 2014 showing a total distribution of 204,720 condoms.

As usage levels have risen, the market’s value has also grown to P67.6 million or twice that of 2007, with the value driven by the entry of higher-end products and price adjustments in the popular PSI brands of Lovers Plus and Trust.

By 2013, the country’s most popular condom brand was Moods, which lowered its prices in late 2012 and thus cornered the market. However, other higher-end brands such as Durex and Contempo also carved out their niches and had a five percent share of the market in 2012.

PSI’s own Lovers Plus and Trust have also maintained their share of the market and accounted for 10 percent of the market in 2012.