South Sudanese Girls Reject Sanitary Pads
Saved under EASTERN AFRICA, Health, NORTHERN AFRICA, South Sudan, Uganda
Tags: Health, Pads, women
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Although sanitary pads are designed to enhance a woman’s hygiene during menstruation periods, South Sudanese adolescent girls in refugee camps in Adjumani district have rejected them.
As Clara Dradrimo, a senior woman teacher at Alere refugee settlement primary school, explained, many refugee school girls continue to dodge school during menstruation periods.
“[Initially] We thought their parents in the camps were taking good care of them. We were, however, shocked when the girls refused to use the pads which were donated by officials from Plan,” Dradrimo said.
Plan International Uganda is one of the nongovernmental organisations assisting some 108,000 refugees in Adjumani district. But the refugee girls were not used to pads back at home.
“When I asked one of the parents what they use during menstruation periods, she told me they put ash on a piece of cloth,” Dradrimo said.
Viola Abulo, a 15-year-old P6 pupil of Ayilo I refugee settlement primary school, told The Observer that she did not know about pads until her teacher demonstrated how they are used.
“I have found pads good, healthy and easy to use,” Abulo said, shying away from disclosing what she was using before.
Emmanuel Ongiertho, emergency response manager for Plan International in Adjumani, says primary schools in refugee settlements had always reported about girls missing school whenever they are in menstruation periods.
“As Plan, we were looking for ways of helping these girls stay at school. We then linked up with manufacturers of Afripads. We also linked with senior woman teachers to sensitize the girls on how to use the pads,” Ongiertho said.
About Shs 36m has been spent on the project since March, with at least 2,400 packets of pads distributed to eleven schools. A packet of Afripads contains four pieces of reusable sanitary pads which can be used for up to one year.
UGANDA LAUDED
Meanwhile, during the recent World Refugee day celebrations in Adjumani, UNHCR, the UN refugee agency, commended Uganda for hosting refugees who fled the war that broke out in South Sudan in December 2013.
UNHCR Country Representative Neimar Warsame applauded NGOs the agency is working with. Among other things, the refugees have got free ox-plougs, HIV and hepatitis B counseling and testing, as well as education and water and sanitation facilities. Some have since been trained in brick making and vehicle mechanics.
