Champions like no other...

Fatoumata Diallo, 17 years old, from the Heramakono school group in Bamako, had always been aware of the challenges young girls in her community faced during their menstruation. The shame, embarrassment, and lack of access to adequate menstrual hygiene kits were daily realities for many adolescent girls in her community. But rather than just acknowledging these difficulties, Fatoumata decided to act.

A training on how to make sanitary pads was organized by Right to Play with UNICEF support thanks to funding from Netherlands at the Kassé Keita Early Childhood Development Center from December 9th to 10th, 2023. A total of 134 girls, 84 boys, and 15 supervising teachers were trained to make reusable sanitary pads. Fatoumata learned to make reusable sanitary pads with rudimentary materials (cotton khaki fabric, flannel sheet, waterproof fabric, soaked cotton fabric, needle, ribbon, thread, scissors, and pin). This training was a revelation for her and her friends, who also understood many other aspects of menstrual hygiene and its importance for the health and well-being of young girls.

Determined to make a difference, Fatoumata and her classmates decided to pool some of their savings (1000 XOF each) to buy the necessary materials to make the sanitary pads. They worked with determination and solidarity to produce a stock of quality sanitary pads ready to serve the young girls of their school.