Using a condom during sexual intercourse is a topic on which many people have different opinions, where some find it difficult to go buy one for the first time thinking that if someone heard them asking for it in a ’boutique’, they would be seen as promiscuous, among other things.
However, do not let shame poison you, as the Rwandan saying goes, and neglect to use a condom if abstaining is challenging for you, because using it is the only reliable method that can protect you three times more from causing or getting an unplanned pregnancy.
Those three times also apply to protecting you from sexually transmitted diseases such as AIDS, gonorrhea, and others.
Let’s get back to our question. How was it for you the first time you went to buy a condom? While you’re thinking about that and possibly replying in the comments, let us share with you the responses of some residents of Kigali City who spoke to Kura.
Mugabe Kelvin said that the first time he went to buy a condom, he stood for about two hours waiting for all the customers to leave so that no one would see him and tell his family.
He said, ‘‘The first time I went to buy one, I stood at the ’boutique’ for like two hours. I’m not lying! […] Whenever I saw someone who knew my mother coming, I’d think, ‘I can’t just say what I came to buy right away’, and the seller would ask me, ‘Mugabe, why don’t you tell me what you came to buy?’, and I’d say, ‘Just serve them first! I have no problem with that.’’
Samuel Uwimanimpaye lied to the seller to get a condom to supposedly inflate a football, so as not to leave the seller wondering too much or looking at him as a promiscuous person.
He said, ‘‘Eeeeeeh! When I went to buy it, I lied that I was going to use it to inflate a ball, but I was very embarrassed. […] back then, we had a man called Murokore in the neighborhood where we lived, and he knew my mother well enough to tell her immediately.’’
Rudasingwa Paul said, ‘‘It was very difficult, waiting for the people to clear out of the shop! But maybe it was just that time, as the years go by and we get older, in this century it doesn’t seem like a big deal anymore. I feel like it’s not a big deal to go and buy a condom.’’
All of them agree that people, both young and old, should not be ashamed to buy condoms if they plan to have sexual intercourse with someone they are not married to, so both can be assured that they do not have sexually transmitted diseases, because their health is the most important thing over everything else they might think.
Indeed! In July 2023, the World Health Organization (WHO) revealed that since 1990, the use of condoms has played a significant role in preventing approximately 117 million cases of HIV infection in 77 of the most affected countries.
These risks were reduced by 47% in Sub-Saharan African countries, and by 37% in countries in Asia and the Pacific.
Using condoms also provides triple protection against contracting HIV, other sexually transmitted diseases, and unwanted pregnancies, as indicated by WHO.
Based on this information, remember that your well-being is in your hands, and let it encourage you to be cautious and avoid unprotected sex, to protect yourself from dangers that could lead to death.
