Since China and Malaysia implemented government-imposed lockdowns due to COVID-19 pandemic, a global shortage of condom looms in the future.
The condom shortage may threaten decade-long humanitarian efforts to spread another kind of virus — the HIV.
Reuters reported that Karex Bhd, a condom producer in Malaysia, has stopped making condoms in the past two weeks.
Karex sells and distributes one out of every five condoms worldwide, including banks like Durex.
“We are going to see a global shortage of condoms everywhere, which is going to be scary,” Karex Chief Executive Goh Miah Kiat told Reuters. He said he foresees the shortage lasting for months.
In addition to Malaysia, Thailand and India are home to most of the factories that produce condoms. As coronavirus cases surge, shutdowns in these countries could also contribute to a condom shortage.
