Stop punishing menstruating girls

Nelson Mandela once said “Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.”

Poverty in Namibia is widely recognised as one of our major social, economic and political hurdles and measures to eradicate it forms part of all our much praised development plans.

And yet, the smallest of measures that could directly tackle the barriers to education is still being debated, and not implemented.

In the past few weeks, a call to provide free sanitary products to school girls whose families can’t access or afford them, has made the rounds in the country.

The debate is a critical one, but instead of taking action after countless studies and articles have pointed out how devastating the impact of menstruating without access to sanitary products is, we are still debating.


Key ministries remain mum on the subject, allowing their blushes to override the need for coming up with solutions.

Studies have shown that an estimated 1 in 10 girls in Africa miss school during menstruation, totalling up to 50 days of missed days. Many simply drop-out once they reach puberty.


The solutions are simple, and don’t have to be pricey.

Last year a South African campaign distributed 88 menstrual cups to students in order to help reduce absenteeism and address the myths and still deeply entrenched culture of shame around menstruation.

The advantage of providing menstrual cups, instead of tampons or pads, is multiple.

A menstrual cup is environmentally friendly, lasts up to five years, costs less than the cumulative costs of 60 months’ worth of non-renewable pads or tampons, is safe and hygienic and can provide up to 12 hours of protection at a time.

A simple solution to a problem that robs many of our school girls of their basic human right to an education.

The writer Eli Khamarov wrote “Poverty is like punishment for a crime you didn’t commit,” and being forced to miss out on school because you are menstruating sounds like a terrible punishment indeed.