375 sanitary towels donated to Emshukantambo
The University of Johannesburg’s (UJ) Community Engagement team from the Soweto Campus has donated 375 sanitary towels to Emshukantambo Secondary learners.
The University of Johannesburg’s (UJ) Community Engagement team from the Soweto Campus has donated 375 sanitary towels to Emshukantambo Secondary learners. The handover was made at the school on Friday morning.
The team’s leader and Volunteer Champions Ambassador, Enough Zakhele Tibane said they wanted to make sure that no child ever got bullied or missed a day of school due to a lack of sanitary towels.
“I grew up in Bushbuckridge, it is something that I have seen myself when I was in school. A girl got her period and did not have sanitary towels. She was laughed at and teased as if she had done something wrong. I told myself there and then that if I ever got the opportunity, I would start a project to donate sanitary packs to girls,” he said.
The initiative featured approximately 32 volunteers who were involved in donating and delivering the packs, while Girls Inc made a monetary donation. “This is part of protecting our young leaders that are coming through. Making sure they get a good educational experience without the burden of worrying about periods,” explained Tibane.
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Tibane also said that men needed to step up and get involved. “One of the biggest challenges we faced when seeking donations were men. Some asked “but you are a man, why are you collecting pads”.
It shows a level of ignorance. No girl chooses to have a menstrual circle. I think more men need to be educated and step up to make sure that girls don’t carry the financial burden alone,” he said. While he could only serve in his office for one year, Tibane said he would like to see the project become a yearly initiative and get more sponsors involved.
“I am only sitting on this role for this year, but I would really love to continue the project and have more people come on board. I think many more girls can be reached and many more schools as well. We wrote many proposals to sponsors. We also hope to have more sponsorships come through to help reach more girls,” he concluded.
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