Adolescent girls in Ward 16, Mabhada village in Nkayi, under Chief Dakamela, are struggling to access sanitary wear, resulting in some missing school.
The high cost of sanitary wear has been a cause for concern, especially for young girls in rural areas.
The parliament has raised the matter on several occasions, noting that the government has to supply young girls with pads to support them on issues of menstrual hygiene.
In an interview with CITE, Sanelisiwe Mpofu, the headman’s secretary for Ward 16, appealed for assistance with sanitary wear for young girls in their community.
She said some girls miss school when they are on their menstrual periods, which is a setback, especially for those in examination classes.
“Sanitary pads are quite expensive and some parents in our community cannot afford to buy them for their daughters. Some resort to giving them pieces of cloth which are not very convenient,” Mpofu narrated.
“The pieces of cloth are not durable, hence at times when they get heavy flows they have to stay at home because if they go to school like that they would be highly likely to stain their uniforms. So in fear of embarrassing themselves in front of their schoolmates, they stay at home until they are finished.”
Mpofu further explained that some of the girls reach puberty early and they struggle to properly wash their cloths.
“Some of the girls are still young and for them to wash those cloths to perfection can be a challenge for them. The hygiene part may also expose them to health challenges that is why we are asking for assistance in this regard,” she said.
Mpofu said there are some organisations that are helping out but they cannot cover everyone.
“We do have an organisation that helps us but they have limited resources. They select a limited number of girls that they can assist at a time. There was also another organisation that came some time back that taught young mothers (girls who fell pregnant early) how to make reusable pads but they are now gone and not all the girls benefited from the program. If we can have more of such initiatives we can be able to help our girls.”
Those who may wish to assist the girls or get more details can contact Sanelisiwe Mpofu on 0717238422.
