11 September, 2024

Empowering futures – ending period poverty

Together with their benefactor, Macsteel, Komani is planning a road trip along the Western and Eastern Cape, stopping at 12 less fortunate schools and handing over 10 000 washable sanitary pads, to grade 4 to 7 girls, in the process. Komani is an innovative social enterprise brought to life by The Umtshayelo Foundation, or TUF, is on a mission to get girls back to school by enabling them to manage their monthly period with dignity by means of reusable, quality sanitary pads.

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The Komani to Komani (K2K) road trip will reach outlying areas in Langeberg, Hessequa and the Garden Route, concluding in the town of Komani.

In a country where half the population is living under the poverty line, menstruating with dignity is a struggle for close to 8 million South African females. The economic and social challenges resulting from the lack of access to affordable menstrual products, proper sanitation facilities, and information about menstrual health, means period poverty threatens to derail any progress toward a more equal society for women. Using unhygienic materials or being absent from school or work leads to a cycle of missed opportunities and potential health risks.

Komani is committed to period positivity by manufacturing and distributing reusable sanitary pads and educating young ladies about menstrual health and hygiene management. Komani recognises that keeping girls in school will improve the broader economic prospects for South Africa.

Skills development

Uplifting communities through job creation and entrepreneurial opportunities is just the tip of the iceberg as Komani is a social enterprise of TUF. TUF is a registered non-profit organisation whose holistic approach has been breaking the cycle of poverty and transforming communities since 2013. Komani partially funds TUF’s other incredible initiatives such as a senior care program (benefitting 50 seniors), after school education program (80 students) and an open kitchen (which turns food waste into meals and food parcels). It is through TUF that Macsteel initially got involved from a CSR point of view.

TUF is passionate about upliftment in communities and already provide employment to 13 staff who work in the production and distribution of Komani washable pads. These young women can start their own businesses selling Komani packs as Komani provides product orientation and other skills development training to these budding entrepreneurs.

“It is very important for a business, like Macsteel, to invest in the communities where we operate. Keeping young people in school to ensure that they get an education is paramount. We are proud to support TUF and specifically the Komani project,” says Mike Benfield, Macsteel CEO.

Macsteel has been supporting TUF since 2014. The company and its employees are rallying behind the project by raising funds towards the road show for the different beneficiaries and buying the Komani product, either to donate or for own use.

The project may be supported by donating directly using Snapscan or Payfast via the website https://komani.org/donate/. Period poverty silently steals the education, dreams, and future potential of South African women and girls. Let’s join hands to end it.

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Empowering futures – ending period poverty

Skills development

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