When Esperance Dusabe first got her periods, her grandmother, who was her guardian then, could not afford to buy sanitary towels commonly known as pads.
When Esperance Dusabe first got her periods, her grandmother, who was her guardian then, could not afford to buy sanitary towels commonly known as pads.
She had to skip school until her menstrual periods were over because she had no means of preventing the blood from socking her uniform. Dusabe is among the thousands of girls who go through this challenge every month.
World Bank statistics indicate that at least 20 per cent of schoolgirls in the country, particularly in rural areas, miss school, up to 50 days per year, because they cannot afford buying sanitary pads.
Another survey by a local NGO, Sustainable Health Enterprise says 18 per cent of girls and women in Rwanda missed out on school and work last year because they could not afford to buy sanitary pads.
"I was so scared because I knew very little about the whole menstrual process. I secretly cut out a piece of my mattress and used it as a pad but it was soaked in less than thirty minutes. I was scared, broke and mostly naïve because I eventually pulled a page out of an exercise book and used it to clean up the mess,” Dusabe says.
Like Dusabe, most girls; especially in rural areas have nothing but pieces of cloth and papers to get them through their periods.
Julian Kayibanda works with Child Resource Institute Rwanda under the early childhood education programme.
She has previously dealt with issues concerning ease of access to sanitary pads for less privileged girls under the Sustainable Health Enterprise (SHE Rwanda).
She says that sanitary pads are expensive and unavailable in rural areas because a few shops sell them since a few people can afford to purchase them.
"This is not a problem that is only in the rural areas but also in urban areas. It affects the young girls not only socially but also academically and in the long run it affects their well-being. If for instance, they miss like five days a month because they have no pads, you can imagine how many days they miss the whole year,” she saysKayibanda says that this, in the end, affects performance in school and contributes to the rise in school drop outs.
She suggests a waiver of taxes on sanitary pads that are imported into the country.
"In 2013, I approached the women members of parliament advocating for removal of taxes, and we debated in parliament and though some countries like Kenya actually waived the taxes, Rwanda has definitely not done so and the issue is who follows up so that things are implemented?” Kayibanda asks.
A recent survey conducted by The New Times discovered that the cheapest pack of 10 pads in Kirehe costs Rwf600 (about $0.85)
Kayibanda also says that there in need for awareness programmes among women and girls especially in the rural community because even those who can afford to buy sanitary pads actually deliberately refuse to do so because they see it as waste of money.
Girls should be sensitised on hygiene practices first, and also on cheap and effective alternatives to sanitary pads.
Kayibanda calls for use of local products such as sisal and fiber to make affordable pads.
Christine Kandang’o, a teacher at La Colombiere School says that girls at her school don’t face such obstacles because they can afford buying the sanitary pads. However, she says that girls in rural areas are not as lucky ending up using paper or pieces of old clothes and other materials which are unhygienic.
"I have friends who teach in rural areas but they are always talking about how girls still have the issue of access to sanitary pads; a problem that has made most of the girls lose confidence as they are often scared of soiling their uniforms,” she says.
Kandang’o says that Rwandans should pick a leaf from some Kenyan organizations which make reusable and affordable sanitary pads.
Lydia Mitali, who is in charge of girls education at the Ministry of Education, says that the ministry is trying to curb the problem by providing girls with sanitary pads through the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning.
The sanitary pads are sent to districts and then distributed to the schools.
She explains that the government came up with the programme because the problem was affecting girls’ education.
She explained that waiving taxes on sanitary pads was not sustainable because it does not provide long term sustainable solutions.
"I don’t think waiving taxes on sanitary pads is a solution because even then there will be those who cannot afford to buy them even if they are put at Rwf300 and that’s why I think we should also consider manufacturing them here,” she said
She added that a reduction in taxes may help the ministry in providing more pads.
Julienne Uwase, a student at Kawangire Catholic Groupe Scolaire says that the issue of sanitary pads is one that needs to be addressed since most of her colleagues have a hard time coping.
"It’s hard getting pads, that is why I sometimes resort to pieces of cloth which are really not hygienic,” Uwase says.
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I say: What should be done to make sanitary pads affordable?
Diana Tumuhairwe
I think as discussed in parliament a few years back, taxes should be waived as this will help decrease the high prices of sanitary pads. Most pads don’t cost below Rwf600; this is too high as one can use more than a packet every month. I think the government should take the initiative to look into this issue.
Deborah Mutoni - student
Some girls lack access to sanitary pads mainly because prices are high and no doubt this affects their lives in unhealthy ways. While others just lack access because they are in rural areas, I think the government should find ways of distributing the kits even to rural areas where every girl can access them.
Maureen Sanyu - student
The government should put more emphasis in its project of distributing sanitary pads to both primary and secondary schools since some students especially those in primary start their periods early. This can help not only to promote hygiene and a healthy lifestyle but it will reduce on the number of students who miss school and later drop out because of something that is otherwise minor.
Jacky Murerwa - intern with National Institute of Statistics
In my opinion, some NGOs should take the initiative to help women and girls who cannot afford buying sanitary pads. This may seem like a small problem but it really affects many people’s lives.
Compiled by Dennis Agaba