Home Health Fighting Stigma and Providing Solutions: Chipo Chikomo’s Impact on Menstrual Health in Zimbabwe
HealthPhilanthropy

Fighting Stigma and Providing Solutions: Chipo Chikomo’s Impact on Menstrual Health in Zimbabwe

Share
Share

The name Chipo Chikomo has become synonymous with making feminine hygiene products accessible to girls in Zimbabwe, particularly those who struggle to obtain menstrual health supplies.

Chipo is a social entrepreneur at the forefront of revolutionizing the feminine hygiene industry. She is passionate about ensuring that women and girls have access to sustainable menstrual health products and are empowered with the practical knowledge to manufacture these products locally.

Around 72 percent of schoolgirls in rural Zimbabwe cannot afford sanitary pads. In some extreme cases, they miss days of school because of this. Many girls resort to using unconventional materials, such as cow dung, leaves, newspapers, and other alternatives to manage their menstruation. This practice poses serious health risks and may lead to conditions such as cervical or ovarian cancer, sometimes resulting in premature death.

Data from the Forum of African Women Educationalists (FAWE) and the Global Partnership for Education shows that while some schools in Zimbabwe receive disposable pads, not all learners benefit, and the sustainability of these supplies is a major issue. The pads are limited, and distribution is not equitable.

In some schools, students are required to request pads from the staff room or the school director’s office, which can be an embarrassing process. As a result, some girls may choose to skip school or stay home altogether, missing out on valuable lessons.

Chipo’s desire to change this situation led her to establish Nhanga Trust, a social enterprise focused on empowering women and girls with the skills to make washable sanitary pads.

“We see many girls walking long distances to school. This means that during their monthly menstrual cycles, they don’t attend school because they don’t have pads to use,” Chipo explained in an interview with Inter Press Service (IPS).

In Shona, the word “Nhanga” refers to a “girls’ bedroom,” and through her social enterprise, Chipo has given girls a stronger voice in matters related to menstrual health, providing them with the platform to produce their own pads.

By teaching girls and women how to make their own sanitary pads, Chipo’s initiative significantly reduces the costs typically associated with purchasing retail products. This approach has helped change a narrative that previously overlooked the rights of girls and women to menstrual dignity.

Chipo and her partners have transformed the lives of countless girls and women through the creation of washable pads, which can last up to five years. This innovation ensures that girls no longer have to miss school during their periods. It eliminates gender inequality in education for children in vulnerable situations and encourages girls to develop entrepreneurial skills that will help them achieve their goals in life.

To date, Nhanga Trust has distributed more than 20,000 washable kits to rural schoolgirls across Zimbabwe, improving their access to reproductive healthcare. An innovative aspect of this initiative is that the fabric offcuts from pad production are used to make reusable breast pads.

Nhanga Trust has also made a point of including boys in its menstrual health education programs, recognizing the importance of breaking the stigma and discrimination surrounding menstruation. To date, Nhanga Trust has trained over 100,000 boys and girls.

Under Chipo’s leadership, Nhanga Trust has gained national recognition, earning a gold certification for manufacturing in 2018. Chipo’s drive to champion change motivates her to continue advocating for girls’ and women’s access to affordable sanitary wear and menstrual dignity.

“I am doing something that I have not seen before, but it is an answer to what people in my country need,” she wrote on the Nhanga Trust Facebook page.

Chipo has also partnered with Days for Girls, a global organization dedicated to advocating for menstrual hygiene rights and empowering girls and women in this regard. Days for Girls has positively impacted over three million girls and women in more than 145 countries.

As the country representative for Days for Girls in Zimbabwe, Chipo has used both local and international platforms to highlight the importance of supporting the health needs of impoverished women and girls.

She has also demonstrated exceptional skill in forming strategic partnerships with other local and international organizations, including Saalt Menstrual Cup Co. USA, Zimbabwe Prison Services, and the Australian Embassy in Harare.

Chipo has set a strong example for other girls to follow. She received a full scholarship in Leadership and Social Entrepreneurship in 2013 from the Kanthari Institute in India, an institute founded by renowned Sabriye Tenberken, a 2005 Nobel Peace Prize nominee.

In 2015, Chipo was the only female among the five winners of the United States African Development Foundation (USADF) grant competition in Zimbabwe. More notably, she was part of the 2016 Mandela Washington Fellowship, a program established by former U.S. President Barack Obama.

Chipo, who holds a Bachelor of Social Sciences in Psychology and Sociology from Africa University, has also participated in the Business and Entrepreneurship track at the University of Iowa in the United States.

Chipo’s accomplishments include being the sole female winner of the 2021 Value Creation Challenge Grant by Old Mutual.

Chipo’s story is a testament to resilience, determination, and a passion for driving positive change. After witnessing firsthand the challenges faced by girls in rural Zimbabwe in accessing sanitary products, she embarked on a mission to make a difference.

She has boldly stood up for young girls and women who had no platform or voice. By giving them hope and dignity, she has also become a shining example of what they can achieve when they believe in themselves.

Share
Related Articles

From DRC to Uganda: Fazil’s Mission of Nutrition

Fazil Buffol’s journey to founding Masoka Nutrition for Development (MANUD) began with...

Joseph Anokye: From Struggle to Agri-Food Success

In the heart of Ghana’s Ashanti Region lies a small farming community...

She Deserves Tackles Menstrual Absenteeism in Uganda

Uganda’s Jackline Birungi was only 13 when the realities of menstrual poverty...

Dr. Murudo Kamhara-Mutape’s philanthropy drives Medinsight Health to the top

“When the question of a career choice was first asked in Grade...