…Tackles period poverty
MARTIN MAWAYA
GWERU-The Aids Healthcare Foundation (AHF) Zimbabwe has set its sights on helping over a million girls in a pads campaign, as period poverty continues to plague marginalized communities across the country.
Globally, nearly two billion individuals menstruate, with 500 million experiencing period poverty, including lack of access to menstrual health products, safe facilities, and accepting communities.
According to AHF Prevention Program Manager Clever Taderera, the campaign will target vulnerable communities, school-going children and highlighting how menstruation intersects with HIV vulnerability and its adverse effects on mental health.
Taderera added that the “Lack of access to sanitary pads has the potential to increase school dropouts, with about 20 percent missing out on school due to period poverty.”
“This leads to high numbers of women and young girls engaging in transactional or transgenerational sex to access resources to buy pads, limiting their ability to negotiate for safer sex and increasing HIV risks,” said Taderera during the media breakfast meeting on period poverty and menstrual hygiene day commemorations on Wednesday.
The provision of sanitary pads to vulnerable girls is part of AHF’s broader strategic HIV prevention efforts, which highlight the link between menstrual health and HIV.
Midlands Provincial Medical Director Dr. Mary Muchekeza emphasized that the health impacts of period poverty are far-reaching and devastating, requiring a multisectoral approach.
Dr. Muchekeza noted that stigma, cultural taboos, and lack of menstrual hygiene access undermine dignity and increase HIV risk among women and girls.
She implored communities, organizations, and government to create a supportive, inclusive environment where individuals can openly discuss and address menstrual health issues.
“Addressing period poverty is essential for achieving several United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) under ‘Agenda 2030’,” Dr. Muchekeza added.
In recognition of the importance of the media, Dr. Muchekeza urged journalists to exercise their power judiciously, highlighting the media’s role in delivering health-related messages to the community.
Itayi Mariko, a representative of the National Council of Disabled Persons of Zimbabwe, stated that people with disabilities face significant challenges in managing their menstrual periods in a dignified manner.
She noted that individuals with disabilities often experience physical and emotional abuse because they cannot manage these needs independently.
“Period poverty remains rampant and severely impacts people with disabilities, as many cannot afford necessary products. They require social support during their menstrual periods,” Mariko added.
The Zimbabwe government has scaled up a number of initiatives to curb period poverty, including promulgating legal frameworks to remove import tax and value-added tax (VAT) on menstrual hygiene products.
The government also legalized the provision of free sanitary pads at schools through the Education Amendment Act of 2020, as well as increasing budget allocations and supporting community pad centers that provide reusable sanitary pads.
This year’s Menstrual Hygiene Day was held under the theme “Together for a Period Friendly World” and is commemorated globally on May 28 each year.
