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Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | 18,000 girls from ten sub-counties in Kitgum district are expected to acquire skills in making handmade reusable sanitary pads when schools open next year.
The six months training to equip the girls commenced in Kitgum Municipality with training of ten selected women representatives from sub county levels. It is being held at the Kitgum Resident District Commissioner’s board room.
Excel Swale Kafeero, the Project Officer Love Binti, an organization promoting and teaching use of handmade reusable pad says that each of the trainers will train a maximum of 300 girls throughout the six months.
He says the initiative will help girls acquire the knowledge to identify less costly materials for making pads that can be reusable in a year and also learn menstrual hygiene.
Kafeero notes that this will in turn help at fighting stigma young girls face from school that sometimes ultimately leads to drop out.
He says the organization plans to reach out to one million girls in and out of school adding that already some 150,000 girls have been taught the skills in other regions.
He says in Kitgum district they have partnered with the District Woman Member of Parliament Margaret Lamwaka Odwar to ensure the intended beneficiaries receive the knowledge.
Lamwaka says the intervention is crucial in ensuring that girls stay in school since it will build confidence in them.
According to Lamwaka, many schools especially in remotest areas in the district have had a high enrollment of girls than boys but the numbers drop down especially from Primary five to Primary seven when they start experiencing menstrual periods.
She says poverty among the community members have left girls vulnerable because their parents can’t afford to buy sanitary pads.
According to Lamwaka, the trained girls will be given free sanitary materials donated from Taiwan government but notes that through the skills acquired, they will use materials within their disposal which are less costly.
Two weeks ago, legislators during a parliamentary discussion resolved on the need by government through Ministry of education and Health Ministry to construct regional factories that produces sanitary pads for girls in the country.
Lamwaka says that if the discussion is passed in the next parliamentary budget sitting will help to reduce cost of importing expensive but low quality sanitary towels since most of the region in the country produces cotton.
Nearly 22 percent of girls drop out of school due to lack of sanitary towels.
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