Female Health Company supports the work of UAFC
The UAFC Joint Programme distributes the female condom in Nigeria and Cameroon. Therefore UAFC also makes use of the FC2 of the Female Health Company (FHC). FHC supports this project by providing the female condoms for a sharply reduced price for the three year run of the programme. Support is also involved in the project by giving input for workshops on Female Condom use in Nigeria and Cameroon.
FC1, the Female Health Company’s (FHC’s) first generation female condom, was introduced into the global market in 1996 and since that time has been marketed in over 120 countries.
One of the barriers to increased distribution of FC1 was its cost. FHC responded to this with the development of a second generation female condom, FC2. FC2 is made from a less expensive material, synthetic nitrile rather than the polyurethane of FC1, and through a less capital intensive manufacturing process. However, it maintains equivalence to the first generation female condom in respect to safety, performance and efficacy.
After a lengthy process and the submission of extensive documentation on its design and performance, the World Health Organization (WHO) judged FC2 acceptable for purchases by United Nations agencies in 2006 and the United States Food and Drug Administration (USFDA) approved FC2 in March 2009.
Over the last decade, FC1 has become an established product in Africa with an estimated 25 million pieces distributed respectively in Zimbabwe and South Africa alone. Acceptance and demand for FC1 has been created and maintained by well designed and implemented programmes. Technical assistance for these programmes has been provided by Support, formerly known as the Global Public Sector Team, on a pro bono basis. Support is funded by The Female Health Company.
Support works in countries around the world partnering with governments and other organizations to build effective condom programmes. Their activities are carried out in collaboration with a wide range of international agencies including the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS).
Support’s work in South Africa illustrates the importance of this technical assistance. Since 2003, Support has worked alongside the National Department of Health, all nine of the country’s provincial health departments as well as individual clinics and NGOs on female condom programme planning and implementation. This work has significantly increased demand for the female condom and ensured that people globally are aware that the provision of female condoms as an added choice of protection to both men and women is a crucial and effective part of STI prevention including HIV and prevention of unintended pregnancies
