Support 10 girls to start reusable pads project

This is the first progress report in regard to the reusable menstrual pads project at Raymond Empowerment Foundation (REF), located in Mubende District. REF implemented this project in October 2021 after raising a start-up fund worth 5,000 USD on GlobalGiving fundraising platform. Our team immediatly carried out a learning visit in Bulambuli district, Eastern Uganda to a group of women trained and supported by Higher Education Resource Services, East Africa (HERS-EA) who are making reusable mentrual pads for school going girls and their female community.  We later invited them to come and train non-formal female youths from the tailoring department at our REF vocational skilling school, for one week.

During this reporting period, 300 pieces of menstrual pads have been made by our youths and are to be put in use begining January 2022. This project has been integrated under REF vocational skilling section and community project awareness campaign is underway. The product has alreday been used by 6 girls who found it comfortable, easy to wash and dry. This project will reduce/stop school absentism for school girls who were initially missing school during their menstrual cycle or completely dropping out of school because blood 'embarrassed' them in the classroom. Other female members in surrounding villages will also have access to this product.

Our key challenge so far is shortage of sewing machines; the machines are fewer than the number of youths who want to join this project; that is why we trained 6 girls yet our target was 10, during the training-trainer phase. Another challenge is the high cost of fabrics used for making the reusable mentrual pads. We would like to raise 10,000 USD more to be able to start our journey to project sustainablity.

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