Empowering Women

My sister Rochelle and I just did a blog post on our craft blog about the need for sanitary pads for feminine hygiene in underdeveloped countries. Check it out to find out how you can help! I talk about the problem a little bit in our post, but I wanted to say a little bit more about the issue here.

The Problem:

A major health issue for women and girls living in poverty is their menstrual period. When a girl has her period, she will stay home from school or work for the 5 days she is menstruating, to avoid embarrassment and discomfort. The cumulative effect is around 50-60 days of school or work missed per year. Eventually, this girl could end up dropping out of school because she is so far behind, or losing her job. All of this is the result of one simple thing: a lack of feminine hygiene products.

Buying pads can cost about $1 per month for a woman - a negligible cost to us - but when a family must survive on $1 per day, buying pads isn’t an option. As a result, women use rags, bark, or mud in place of clean, safe, store-bought pads. This often leads to infections.

Women waiting in line at a clinic because of chronic UTIs.
Image Courtesy Of Grow.Learn.Give

The Solution:

In Uganda, I plan to implement a program where women and girls will be taught proper hygiene, how to make their own reusable pads, how their menstrual cycles work.

The impact of having things as simple as feminine hygiene products is huge. Some of the possible results could be: fewer infections, the option of a full education, the ability to have a steady job, and an enriched community that values the contributions of its women. The effect would be continuous, with future generations having the same opportunities.