Many of us know what it’s like to lend a tampon or a pad to someone - anyone - who needs one.
It doesn’t matter if it’s your sister, a friend, or a complete stranger in the loo. It’s an unwritten rule that we always help out in an emergency, if we can.
What about a woman living in a refugee camp in Uganda? Would you help her out too, if you could?
Around the world, thousands of women, girls and people who menstruate live without access to the safe sanitary products they need, putting their health and safety at risk.
But ActionAid is working to end period poverty.
So if you know what it’s like to need a tampon or a pad, and to be helped out by a stranger, please pass the favour on. Help us to end period poverty for good.
How your monthly gift can help end period poverty
If you’ve ever been helped out with a spare pad, or tampon – pass on the favour to someone in need. Giving a monthly gift could help women, girls and people who menstruate with the menstrual products they need, every month.
Why we work to end period poverty
Access to menstrual products and safe, hygienic spaces in which to use them is essential for anyone who menstruates. So is the right to manage our periods without shame or stigma.
But around the world, millions can’t afford or don’t have access to the safe menstrual products they need.
A lack of access to menstrual products means some people are forced to manage their periods in dangerous, unsanitary and ineffective ways.
And it’s not only the potential health risk – period poverty can also mean girls’ education, well-being, and sometimes entire lives are affected.
What ActionAid does
ActionAid work with women and girls, community leaders, men and boys, schools and governments to help end period poverty around the world — once and for all.
- In many of the world’s poorest countries, we provide training on how to make reusable sanitary pads, which are affordable and sustainable.
- In our girls’ clubs and safe spaces in schools, we help girls learn about their bodies, menstruation and health, build confidence and come together to advocate for their rights.
- And in humanitarian crises, we distribute kits containing menstrual products, soap and clean underwear, so women, girls and people who menstruate can manage their periods safely and with dignity.
How ActionAid helps girls like Charity
Charity, 14, is a refugee from South Sudan. Like 1.5 million other refugees, she’s now living in Uganda, after fleeing war and conflict.
After starting her period in a refugee settlement, there were times when Charity didn’t have access to any menstrual products. This means staying home from school during her period.
But Charity has been part of an ActionAid project that distributes free, reusable sanitary pads to girls. We’re also running workshops where girls can learn how to sew their own reusable pads.
Together, we're ensuring girls like Charity have access to the menstrual products they need, which makes them less likely to drop out of school or be forced into early marriage. After receiving the reusable pads, Charity says:
I was happy…They have helped me a lot. I have access to pads every month.”
For girls like Charity, 14, the Covid-19 pandemic has made menstrual products ever harder to access.
Esther Sweeney/ActionAid
About ActionAid
ActionAid is an international charity that works with women and girls living in poverty.
Our dedicated local staff are changing the world with women and girls. We are ending violence and fighting poverty so that all women, everywhere, can create the future they want.
We operate in rural and urban communities across Asia, Africa and Latin America.
We're committed to ending the cycle of violence in communities around the world, enabling women's economic empowerment, and supporting women's and girls' rights during humanitarian crises.
Page updated 1 August 2024