Obey Musiwa
Herald Reporter
South African beauty queen and Miss Unity World 2026 Tshepiso Tsogang has arrived in Zimbabwe to lead a drive to distribute sanitary products to between 5 000 and 10 000 girls in target areas such as Zvimba and Seke.
This development comes as the Government is planning to enact a dedicated Menstrual Health Management Act so that no girl misses school because she cannot afford menstrual products.
The Period Friendly Pad Drive, spearheaded by Intercontinental Youth Connect (IYC), runs from November 2 to 5 in Zvimba, Seke and Chinhoyi, with outreach starting on Tuesday.
In support of this, Women’s Affairs Minister Monica Mutsvangwa previously announced the planned law at the inaugural Zimbabwe Menstrual Health Symposium in Harare, saying a Menstrual Health Management Policy or Framework would eventually become an Act of Parliament.
The Education Amendment Act already commits Government to providing sanitary wear and other menstrual health facilities to girls in all schools. The drive also targets a gap that research has documented.
Speaking to Zimpapers at Robert Mugabe International Airport on Sunday, Ms Tsogang, who is IYC’s brand ambassador said lack of access to menstrual products is a serious education issue that is often brushed aside.
She said the drive will give girls a choice between sanitary pads and menstrual cups, and will teach them about both options to counter stigma and health misconceptions.
“Imagine a girl child cannot go to school because she doesn’t have access to menstrual products,” she said.
She said the target of up to 10 000 beneficiaries allows for girls who are too shy to come forward, with mothers and sisters often collecting on their behalf.
“Our team is also planning to reach neighbouring villages beyond the main sites,” said Ms Tsogang.
”There are neighboring villages that are forgotten, that are not seen, where the young girls feel like they’re not a part of society. So we want to make them a part of society.”
Ms Tsogang, who is the founding director of Girl Child Education, said the organisation runs its pad drive across Africa’s 54 countries.
She called Zimbabwe her “second home” and thanked the people for the warm welcome.
A 2019 formative study found that lack of sanitary ware was a major reason for missing school, cited by 32,5 percent of respondents in rural areas and 8,9 percent in urban areas.
IYC corporate affairs director Mr Daniel Zinyama said the organisation, which runs youth leadership, diplomatic mission and entrepreneurship training programmes, believes every child must be able to attend school, and that period poverty is one of the obstacles.
He said Ms Tsogang, who recently won the Miss Unity World pageant in India, is joining the campaign to end period poverty in Zimbabwe.
“We have to ensure that every single child, boy and girl, has the opportunity and the ability to attend school. And we know that there are hindrances and period poverty is one of them,” said Mr Zinyama.
He said the campaign will draw on IYC’s local and international partners, and that it will end in Chinhoyi.
“We are willing to ensure that we bring in support from all our networks, whether local or international, to ensure that every single girl child is able to go to school,” he said.
