Period Poverty: Sanitary Pads Empower Gambian Women and Girls

Many women and girls in The Gambia cannot afford menstrual products during their period. This “period poverty” is more acute in rural areas, including Basse, in the country’s Upper River Region. As a result, some girls miss schools during their period and lag behind academically. To tackle this problem, United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and its partners manufacture sanitary pads at a production-support centre and distribute them among women and girls in various parts of the country. The agency also disseminates information on sexual and reproductive health and supports community efforts to end period shaming and stigma. Fatoumatta Fatty is one of the women who work at the pad production - support centre. She had many challenges in life with her disabilities, but since she learned sewing skills and started working for the centre, her life has become better. Fatoumatta takes pride in making products that help other women and herself. (Video produced in partnership with UNFPA). For article: https://news.un.org/en/story/2023/05/..., https://news.un.org/en/story/2023/03/... For podcast: https://news.un.org/en/audio/2023/03/...