Hertta-Maria Amutenja
Teachers across the country are raising concerns about the lack of sanitary pads for schoolgirls, saying period poverty continues to affect the children’s attendance, academic performance, and participation in school activities.
Christof Ngavetene, principal of Tsumkwe Secondary School, said menstrual hygiene products should be made available to all learners to ensure that no girl misses school due to her period.
“Sanitary pads should be distributed freely to all schools. The Ministry of Gender and Social Welfare should make budgetary allocations for every child in school. Companies providing catering services to hostels should also be obligated to include sanitary pads as part of their contracts,” he said.
Ngavetene said girls who do not have access to sanitary pads often stay home from school, leading to absenteeism and, in some cases, dropouts.
Muhona Ngurare, principal of Omatako Combined School, shared similar sentiments, stating that girls without access to sanitary products are often withdrawn and less engaged in school activities.
“Girls are not confident and are not comfortable staying in class or around other learners during their period. They do not perform well in assessments and tests. Some even avoid participating in subjects like Physical Education and Arts, which are part of the curriculum. The situation is worse in marginalised communities like the San,” he said.
Ngurare added that the provision of sanitary pads has improved school attendance and reduced dropout rates.
He requested more help and suggested adding soap to enhance hygiene.
“With the help received so far, girls are better informed on what to do and where to seek assistance. They are assisted by the life skills teacher, who keeps the pads in her office. We appreciate the assistance, but the provision of sanitary products should not stop,” he said.
He emphasised that the lack of menstrual hygiene products directly affects learners’ academic performances.
“Girls without pads tend to be withdrawn during school. They lose confidence and often stay home to avoid bullying from their peers. This affects their academic performance because they miss lessons and assessment activities,” Ngurare said.
Paulina Kambonde, founder of the K’Negongo Foundation, said the organisation, which manufactures and donates sanitary pads to schoolgirls across the country, has been overwhelmed by requests for assistance.
“We receive letters from schools across the country asking for help. It is overwhelming because we need sponsors for these projects, and when we do not receive assistance, it becomes difficult to meet the demand,” she said.
Kambonde said the foundation provides a bag containing 100 sanitary pads and a bar of soap for N$100, which lasts a girl close to a year.
She called on the government to set aside a budget specifically for providing sanitary pads in schools and urged the private sector to contribute through corporate social responsibility initiatives.
“The best thing would be for the government to allocate a budget for sanitary pads for schoolgirls. The private sector should also get involved to eradicate period poverty in Namibian schools,” she said.
A significant number of girls—14.2%—miss at least one day of school due to the direct effects of menstruation, according to a 2021 report by the health and education ministries.
The report, titled Menstrual Health and Hygiene Management (MHHM), surveyed 1 119 girls between the ages of 10 and 19 from all over Namibia to gauge their attitudes towards menstruation and identify shortcomings contributing to period poverty.
According to the report, “the primary challenges learners experience in schools are access to adequate water and sanitation facilities, as well as access to hygiene products and services for washing hands and the body where needed.”
Some schools do not have access to clean and running water. In the Kavango West Region, for example, 47 out of 176 (26.7%) schools had no water, while in Kavango East, this figure stood at 54 out of 164 (32.9%).
In 2023, Namibia, Mexico, and Britain were among the countries that passed laws to abolish the “tampon tax,” which refers to consumption levies such as value-added tax (VAT) on items such as sanitary pads, tampons, panty liners, and menstrual cups.
Namibia’s finance minister, Iipumbu Shiimi, announced in 2021 that the country would remove the 15% tax on menstrual products in the 2022/2023 financial year.
However, in January 2023, Shiimi stated that tampons are not exempt from sales tax because they are considered luxury items.
As a result, VAT has only been removed from menstrual pads and maternity pads designed for use in pre- and post-birth bleeding.
