Circumcision offers no immunity to HIV/Aids – Malawi health ministry
The Ministry of Health has demystified the myth about circumcision craze that has lately been perceived by some Malawians as being an immunity booster against contracting the deadly HIV/AIDS scourge.
Malawians are cautioned against false sense of security that circumcision is an immunity booster against HIV/AIDS.
The Ministry of Health has said about 150,000 men have been circumcized since Voluntary Medical Male Circumcision (VMMC) campaigned was rolled off in 2011 and it targets to circumcize 1.8 million men by 2018.
According to the ministry, VMMC reduces the risk of female-to-male sexual transmission of HIV by approximately 60 percent.
Speaking during refresher training for Journalists on VMMC in Blantyre Tuesday, Henry Chimbali, the ministry’s spokesperson, said it saves costs by averting new HIV infections and reducing the number of people needing HIV treatment and care.
“VMMC provides men life-long partial protection against HIV as well as other sexually transmitted infections.
“It should always be considered as part of a comprehensive HIV prevention package of services and be used in conjunction with other methods of prevention, such as female and male condoms,” Chimbali said.
He also observed that most married men are put off by the six weeks sex abstinence period, which one is advised to observe for the wound to get healed.
On his part, Paul Manyamba, Programme Officer for National Association for People Living with HIV and AIDS (Napham), who organised the training, said women are also integral part of the VMMC and that married couples can always go for pre VMMC counselling to ably understand what is the six weeks abstinence period is all about.
The media training, organised with funding from AVAC, a United States based organisation, was a follow- up training on previous one conducted by Bridge II project in collaboration with Ministry of Health.
Malawi first introduced VMMC as part of the country’s HIV prevention package in Phalombe in October 2011. Since then VMMC has been scaled -up to 6 additional districts namely-Chikhwawa, Zomba, Phalombe, Zomba, Lilongwe, Nkhota-kota, and Thyolo.
“While, Malawi has made strides in scaling-up VMMC to other districts, little attention has been focused on media.
“The media is a potential stakeholder dispelling myths around male circumcision, bringing objectivity and explaining the science and benefits of this important HIV prevention intervention.
Accurate and consistent reporting could help mobilise individuals to take up VMMC and realize a public health benefit for both men and women in their communities; hence the media refresher training,” explained Manyamba.
Women—particularly young, attractive women with nice nail polish on—are not about to have sex with a man who’s not circumcised and risk contracting HIV. But health experts contend that even though circumcised men can still have HIV and they most certainly can still pass it on.
Follow and Subscribe Nyasa TV :
ndalama zikusokoneza kagwilidwe kathu ka ntchito, why starting a thing without thourough research? seen now
I know of an HIV infected idiot who went for sekamu with the hope that it will get him cured.
And attractive young women with nail polish go for men with money!!!!!! In my 24 years of philandering no one has asked me if am cut or not, they just make a learned assessment of my monetary capabilities and voila, its in!
So you can either wear a condom…or get part of your dick cut off and STILL wear a condom. Tough choice, I know.
pliz!!inu ahealth auzeni chilungamo anthu kuti m’dulidwe suteteza AIDS.muphesa anthu.Onani nokha pakati pa anthu odulidwa ndi osadulidwa edzi ikuchuluka kuti?mwasokeresa mtundu wa malawi ndi mauthenga abodza.Ndalama zopasidwa zisapangise malawi umbuli.
Onse amene amalengeza kuti mdulidwe umachepetsa kufala kwa AIDS ayenera kuimbidwa mulandu chifukwa anasocheretsa ambiri. If it were in China, tikanangowanyonga basi!
In the only controlled trial of circumcision and male-to-female HIV transmission (Uganda 2009 Wawer/Gray) the CIRCUMCISED men’s partners infected their female partners 50% MORE OFTEN.
Most of the US men who have died of AIDS were circumcised at birth.
return of the living dead talking.
In other words, it offers NO life-long protection, if you don’t ALSO use a condom. This means the condom provides the protection, the circumcision is just added to make it profitable.
Use a condom, or cut off part of your genitals and still use a condom? Do they think people are stupid?
They are just trying to hijack HIV strategies and make money for those who profit from surgical kits, pain killers and circumcision devices. Profitable American style genital cutting traditions… now selling in Africa!
give them back their foreskins!
Ministry of Health is misleading people. There is likely someone islamic in MoH who promoted this religious act. The act of mutilating men’s foreskin can NEVER reduce HIV infection – No way. It just makes getting HIV a lot easier because the wound created does not heal completely because of the nature of the organ wounded. Besides, it is very difficult to conduct research where one can unequivocally demonstrate that a circumsised man having sex with an HIV woman fails to get the HIV whereas an uncircumsised man having sex with HIV woman gets HIV. The variables involved in such… Read more »
kokaaa!