Equality Cycles: Unveiling the realities of Period Poverty

Tamara Magwashu grew up in South Africa without access to sanitary products. Sharing 1 toilet between the  village, in a community without running water. When her mother had to make choices between buying food or sanitary products, Tamara had to utilise alternative ways of taking care of her menstruation. Tamara always knew the unfairness of this situation, and now as a 'Forbes 30 under 30' nominated business woman, she has created an initiative to provide free sanitary pads to schools across South Africa. Tamara has dedicated her life's work to tackling period poverty. 





But what exactly is this term Period Poverty? A global issue referring to how women and girls are unable to access the sanitary products and resources necessary for a safe and clean period. UNESCO reports that 1 in 10 girls miss school during their period in Sub-saharan Africa - and in South Africa alone, 3.7 million girls cannot get access to necessary period products. 


There are a myriad of explanations for these shocking statistics. In the case of water and sanitation, women may not always be able to access clean and safe water, but this may also be due to a lack of facilities (Girod et al, 2017). Without clean water, infections and associated illness can arise. Furthermore, even if there is clean and safe water available, there may not always be a consistent water supply. This, combined with the soap and sanitary product costs related to WASH, affects how girls deal with their period (Rohatgi & Dash, 2023). In some extreme cases, a mixture of these reasons can lead to gender based violence and exploitation in a critical search for dignity.




Links between these factors can be related to the prioritisation of period products and recognition of women’s specific WASH needs. If a women’s menstrual cycle was given more priority in a countries' development targets, some of these impacts, whether that be relating to health, education or more - could be reduced. 


'Taboo': another factor to deal with... 

There is an immense amount of taboo and stigma surrounding menstrual cycles. 'Taboo', understood to be when society crosses over boundaries, in which certain topics can incite fear and disgust (Douglas, 1966: p.10). Through a spatial and geographical lens, 'menstruation' generates stigmatised connotations of bodily functions, words which are associated to women - blood, flesh, fluids. Such language incites a feeling of unease, especially for men who are unfamiliar with menstrual cycles (Longhurst, 2018). When men are the ones creating the rules and regulations around what facilities and resources women can access for their periods, taboo can be a significant barrier to any change being made. In the context of South Africa, Parnell and Pieterse' point on being recognised and 'seen' by the state is important to solve any issues - so if poverty around periods is not even addressed by the state, then how can we expect any solutions (Parnell & Pieterse, 2010: 153)?


Comments

  1. Niuni Amarasinghe3 December 2023 at 12:48

    This was a really interesting read about such an important issue! I also wrote a blog surrounding the issues of period poverty so it was intriguing to read your perspective on it, especially how you conveyed the stigma of menstruation and the barrier gender inequality can impede on receiving rightful access to sanitation and water.
    Do you believe that period poverty can only be resolved by the involvement of the state (top-down approach) or is a bottom-up approach more effective?

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    Replies
    1. Elizabeth Wales5 December 2023 at 07:23

      Hi Niuni, thanks so much for interacting with my post, I'll be sure to check out your post on period poverty as well. Personally, I think that to end the crisis of period poverty, countries will need to use both bottom-up and top-down approaches. However, realistically, unless countries implement new policies and the necessary laws to provide sanitary products for all women soon, it feels like too large a task to deal with the problem today. Therefore, as seen with Tamara's more local initiative, bottom-up ways may be the more effective and timely approach for the time being.

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  2. Sarah Cassin6 December 2023 at 09:23

    Hi Elizabeth, I thought you're opening paragraph was a very impactful start to your blog. I liked that you made the issue feel very human by using a real story but also not 'victimising' any of the people in the blog by highlighting Tamara's success. This was really nice to read. In your opinion, what do you think is the starting point for changing this social stigma?

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    Replies
    1. Elizabeth Wales18 December 2023 at 04:26

      Hi Sarah, thank you so much for your feedback, I think it's important to keep those that we speak about in our posts contextualized and remember that these are very real issues happening today. Therefore, to begin addressing the social stigma around period poverty, I think awareness and spreading of information on the consequences of period poverty is vital. Education to all - both men and women, is essential to allow mutual understanding - promoting empathy rather than shame on these issues.

      Delete
  3. Anonymous9 December 2023 at 07:30

    This comment has been removed by the author.

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  4. xintong9 December 2023 at 07:35

    Great post! The part on free sanitary pads caught my attention. Maybe i am a pessimists but I wonder if making pads free will be a good thing in the long run. I wonder how feasible and sustainable will it be for Tamara to secure the necessary fundings needed to provide free pads. If it is free, will it also create dependency? What if Tamara stopped providing free pads. What would happen to the girls in the community? Pads disposal is also one of my other concern. Does the community have necessary facilities for the girls to throw their used pads? If there's inadequate disposal, water sources may be contaminated and this may cause even greater concern for the community. Nonetheless, it is still a great initiative. Some pads are better than none right. :)

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    1. Elizabeth Wales6 January 2024 at 14:46

      Thanks so much for commenting! Super interesting questions you've posed here, and completely valid at that. I think the situation is definitely complicated and Tamara's provision of free pads is not a perfect solution. However, it's a start, and it is one part of the puzzle in the right direction to find the best way of dealing with a crisis of women and girls not having correct sanitation. When the state does not put in policy to deal with menstruation, a myriad of consequences come from more bottom up approaches - but I guess it is what is necessary (for the short term). In my next post I speak about other context driven approaches that can help with menstruation sanitation when clean, safe water is not available. Great to keep the conversation going! :)

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