Burundi is at the heart of several socio-economic challenges that put 3 million Burundians in need of humanitarian aid in 2017 [1] alone. This includes women and girls who do not have access to hygienic menstrual management products. It is estimated that 80% of Burundian women cannot afford pads and underwear to use every month when they are on their periods. The cheapest (disposable) pads available on the market cost 2500 BIF (approximately 1.5 US$): this is a lot of money to spend every month for many families, in a country whose GDP per capita is approximately 236.8 US$. As a result, women, and girls' resort to unhygienic and undignified methods to manage their periods, such as used pieces of cloth, pieces of old mattresses or old socks filled with sand.This situation takes a dramatic turn in the school environment, which already suffers from lack of water and the dilapidated conditions of toilets (if they are available) in many schools. In addition to having no adequate environment where female students can live their menstrual period in complete privacy, hygiene conditions increase the risk of infections. This has a serious impact on their attendance of classes and their grades. Many prefer to stay at home instead of going to school and miss an average of four days of class each month. A study conducted by the UNICEF in Burundi in 2016 revealed that only 17.1% of female students could afford the disposable pads available on the market. Furthermore, 70.2% of female students missed school during their periods. 88.3% of school principals and teachers interviewed as part of the study confirmed these numbers. Without resources like textbooks to catch up on lessons, the students find themselves further and further behind in lessons, fail tests, get discouraged and far too often, drop out of school. The consequences of dropping out are devastating early marriages and pregnancies, as well as limited career opportunities. This continues the cycle of poverty for the girls and their families. Founded in 2011 by Mrs. Grace Françoise NIBIZI , SaCoDé is a Burundian non-profit organization certified equivalent to an American public charity that works tirelessly to promote healthy communities for sustainable development. The Organization implements various projects, namely: promotion and education on sexual and reproductive health, promotion and education on menstrual health and hygiene, promotion of female entrepreneurship, produce and distribution of washable and reusable sanitary pads AGATEKA, promotion of a balanced diet. As a solution to the problem mentioned above, SaCoDé makes menstrual pads that are reusable, washable and wearable with or without underwear. The pads are branded AGATEKA , which means "dignity" in Kirundi, because we want all girls and women in the world to manage their menstruation normally with dignity. In honor of Christmas day, help SaCoDé team create DIGNITY for underprivileged school girls who can't afford to buy sanitary pads available on the market. We will use your gift to get resources and materials for making AGATEKA sanitary pads which are washable and reusable, wearable without an underwear. This school year, more than 50.000 Burundian schools girls are in need of AGATEKA pads. Thanks to people like you, to this date SaCoDé has been able to produce and distribute AGATEKA sanitary pads to more than 255.646 girls across Burundi since 2017. Please note that, our AGATEKA pads are appreciated for their wearability, washability, and reusability. It a great time full of generosity and gratefulness. And we are so grateful for your generosity! Be part of the change-maker today by donating a kit of AGATEKA washable and reusable sanitary pads to an underprivileged school girl.
Burundi
Donors
Guillaume Suard