Update on the Washable Sanitary Pad Projects

Following the initial workshop at Project Luangwa in Mfuwe, Zambia I was encouraged by the First Lady of Zambia to introduce the workshop into the villages. Getting to some villages was hard, wading across crocodile infested river, and living conditions sometimes quite primitive with no running water or electricity, not to mention utterly basic toilet facilities, but the village ladies were enthusiastic to learn. All the pads were given to local schoolgirls free of charge but due to lack of constant supervision these workshops were not sustainable.

In 2018 a more professional workshop was set up in the city of Lusaka supervised by NPAC Zambia. From here, up to now 52,000 pads have been made and distributed to almost 10,500 girls free of charge. In 2025, with sponsorship from an American charity, the aim is to make a further 30,000 pads. That’s a further 6,000 schoolgirls will benefit and be enabled to attend school full time.
In Malawi we have introduced workshop in Mangochi District and Blantyre. In Kitui Secondary School, Zambia a class was introduced into the curriculum, so the girls and boys learned how to make the pads. 700 ladies, in the local prison who had no access to hygiene facilities were extremely grateful to be provided with pads from the Lusaka workshop.

Two years ago, I was invited by the Ist Lady of Zanzibar to set up a workshop for her Foundation to administer. We began with 3 girls and one boy. Today they have a larger team sewing and over a thousand girls have received pads mostly presented by Her Excellency herself.

This year I returned to visit several workshops and to set up 2 new ones in Tanzania at Dodoma and Dar es Salaam. These have been instigated by Members of Parliament so I have high hopes that they will be successful.
And finally, long distance learning. I was approached by some ladies from Dublin who wished to learn how to make the washable sanitary pads. I sent them my printed instructions and pattern and advised on the fabric. They have now set up a workshop in Lesotho. Similarly, a lady in Uganda has now a workshop there.

Also – Rotary Aquabox (my only English workshop) have a team of ladies making the pads to put in their boxes The first 100 packs of which will be going to Nepal before Christmas.
Future plans are to visit India next year to see what we can do there for Cheryle Berry’s Hope Village.

Marion Tasker (Chairman NPAC)
District 22
marion@taskerpartnership.co.uk