Poor township and rural KwaZulu-Natal girls would no longer have to miss school because they cannot afford sanitary pads during their monthly periods. The province’s education department has begun distributing free sanitary pads that would last each girl six months as part of the Care4Girls programme, an initiative which focuses on impoverished and rural schools. It is estimated that millions of South African schoolgirls aged between 13 and 19 miss one week of school every month due to a lack of sanitary pads. Some girls use unhygienic alternatives to sanitary pads, such as newspaper or even sand and leaves, which puts them at a huge risk of infection. The department’s decision to use some of its budget to distribute sanitary pads to schools has been welcomed by children’s rights organisations, teachers’ unions, medical experts and other stakeholders, most of whom say it will not only ensure that girls have equal access to education but also that their dignity is restored. Kwazi Mth...
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