Johannesburg - South African health officials yesterday tried to calm a furore over the distribution of sub-standard condoms, saying the country would soon meet the highest international standards.
South Africa has one of the highest rates of HIV infection in the world.
The Department of Health has distributed more than 140 million free condoms this year, but investigations following complaints from users, including a group of Cape Town prostitutes, showed that as many as one million of the condoms were defective.