Abstract
Increasing numbers of university students in Sudan are at risk of contracting HIV because of their engagement in condomless sex. A comprehensive and culturally accepted condom promotion program could potentially reduce this threat substantially. However, little is known about the sociocognitive determinants of condom use in this population: information that is required to develop such HIV prevention programs. Therefore, in August 2014, we conducted 30 semi-structured individual interviews with male and female students (both currently sexually active and nonactive) to explore determinants of condom use based on the I-Change model. Data were analyzed using Nvivo 10. The results suggest that barriers to condom use among university students include misconceptions about condom use, negative attitudes toward condom use, lack of social support, low self-efficacy to use condoms, and poor action planning. Sexual health promotion should, therefore, address these aspects to successfully promote condom use among sexually active students and subsequently reduce the risk of HIV transmission.
Highlights
Since 2001, the annual number of new HIV cases and AIDSrelated deaths has declined globally
I have attended training about HIV held by an organisation in which we were told that condom use prevents HIV
The sample included 16 male and 14 female students studying at six different universities in Khartoum State (Sudan)
Summary
Since 2001, the annual number of new HIV cases and AIDSrelated deaths has declined globally. Many countries in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region are still suffering from the rising trends in new HIV infections due to slow response to the HIV epidemic and reluctance to address culturally sensitive issues, such as sex practices before marriage (Gökengin, Doroudi, Tohme, Collins, & Madani, 2016). Sudan is one of the largest African countries in the MENA region. Adolescents and young adults (10–35 years) represent almost half of the population. It is estimated that about 46% of the population lives below the poverty line. Having military conflicts, substantial subsequent population movement and being bordered by countries with high HIV prevalence put
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