Fridae

SPARSHA Nepal is asking the government to set aside money for condoms used in HIV prevention, after a review found gaps in the way demand is counted.

The review describes a problem with basing orders on past distribution: a clinic that runs out hands out fewer condoms. If that smaller total feeds the next order, people's unmet needs can disappear from the figures.

Men who have sex with men and transgender people are among the groups whose needs the authors say must be counted. Government condom procurement mainly runs through the family-planning system, which also pays for other contraceptives.

During interviews and group discussions held from May to July, participants reported difficulty obtaining supplies and paying for private purchases. One clinic said it had rationed condoms and stopped stocking open-access boxes.

SPARSHA Nepal linked the August 2026 report on a webpage dated 14 October. AIDS Healthcare Foundation Nepal supported its preparation.

The report acknowledges government efforts already made: a larger family-planning supplies budget and instructions to district health offices to supply community organisations.

Its recommendations put the Family Welfare Division and National Centre for AIDS and STD Control together on the next task, counting the condoms needed for family planning and HIV prevention separately before orders are placed. The authors also want an emergency supply plan and regular allocations to community groups. Those groups would record requests they could not fill, alongside the condoms they actually distributed.