The Chinese Government will provide free condoms to all sufferers of HIV/AIDS.

The measure is part of a strategy to ensure at least 50 percent of all members of high-risk groups use condoms by the end of next year, Xinhua News Agency reported.

The condoms will be distributed to various parts of the country according to the number of HIV/AIDS patients, the health ministry, the family planning commission and other agencies said in a notice.

Authorities were urged to avoid any discrimination against sufferers during the distribution.

By the end of last year, a total of 62,159 sufferers had been reported, including 8,742 AIDS patients. But experts estimated there were about 840,000 suffers, Xinhua said.

(Shenzhen Daily August 4, 2004)