South Africa period poverty: 'I don't want anyone else to use rags for sanitary pads'

Tamara Magwashu was bullied astatine schoolhouse arsenic her household was not affluent capable to spend sanitary pads.

Now 27, she grew up successful a mediocre township successful South Africa's Eastern Cape state and watched her azygous parent usage aged rags during menstruation.

Tamara would instrumentality astatine slightest a week disconnected schoolhouse portion she was connected her period, and had to larn however to fold and usage the rags, which were precise uncomfortable.

That scarring acquisition has motivated her arsenic an adult.

"I made a prime heavy wrong maine that I didn't privation anyone other to spell done what I did," she tells the BBC.

"So I had the thought to make my ain company, to eradicate play poverty."

She present delivers sanitary pads to hundreds of schools successful the Eastern Cape.

Her enactment has been recognised by her assemblage and she was nominated for this year's Forbes mag 30 nether 30 list, which showcases young campaigners and entrepreneurs from astir the world.

Describing her upbringing successful the township of Duncan Village successful the metropolis of East London, Tamara says she has lived her full beingness "in a shack - ne'er had immoderate windows, ne'er had immoderate [piped] water".

She decided to get part-time jobs aft schoolhouse to effort and marque ends conscionable for her household - and to assistance erstwhile she was connected her period.

"I started to enactment whenever I could astir my studies truthful that I could bargain sanitary pads due to the fact that for maine those rags were precise uncomfortable."

Tamara besides says that arsenic a teen she recovered it precise hard to recognize wherefore she was getting play pains, due to the fact that determination was precise small acquisition astir menstruation.

She was not unsocial successful this struggle.

Anti-poverty NGO The Borgen Project estimates that 7 million South African girls cannot spend to bargain sanitary products.

Across the globe, the World Bank says that astatine slightest 500 cardinal women and girls deficiency entree to the facilities they request during their periods.

And that is the lawsuit for Tamara and her family. They stock a nationalist toilet with astir 50 others successful her township.

Despite South Africa being 1 of the wealthiest countries connected the continent, the young businesswoman thinks it lone truly "shines from the outside".

When she went to assemblage successful Johannesburg to survey nationalist relations, Tamara managed to commencement redeeming immoderate wealth from her pupil indebtedness arsenic good arsenic income from her part-time jobs successful bid to commencement her ain business, with a presumption to changing things for women and girls successful her community.

She had to beryllium self-sufficient arsenic she had tried to get a concern indebtedness but no-one would instrumentality a hazard connected her arsenic she did not person immoderate assets to her name.

She yet launched the concern successful 2021 with the purpose of selling play products astatine an affordable terms for disadvantaged women.

She called it Azosule, which means "to hitch distant each teardrop from their eyes" successful South Africa's Xhosa language.

It besides has a charitable arm, utilizing a information of its profits. Tamara created the "She needs you" run wherever she goes into schools successful agrarian areas to present pads for free.

The Borgen Project estimates astir 30% of girls bash not be schoolhouse determination portion they are connected their play due to the fact that they bash not person entree to sanitary products.

Her erstwhile secondary schoolhouse headteacher is arrogant of her work.

"She has helped the girls truthful much. She has brought truthful galore pads that the girls person capable for six months - it was similar Christmas for them," Thazea Mnyaka says.

"These girls travel from disadvantaged backgrounds wherever their lone meals tin travel from school, however tin they bargain sanitary products?"

In addition, Tamara does section pad drives connected the street, wherever she hands retired her products successful marginalised communities.

Yazini Kuse is simply a journalist, besides from Duncan Village, and she was the archetypal newsman to screen what Tamara was doing.

"I was captivated by her work. She's advocating for the dignity of young girls and women's quality rights due to the fact that we don't person much.

"She's moving towards restoring that," she tells the BBC.

"Despite being successful that concern of poorness herself, she's trying to amended the lives of others, which is astonishing - she's a walking grounds of the value of this."

There are others successful the state moving connected the aforesaid issue.

Nokuzola Ndwandwe is simply a campaigner from Durban who successfully got a income taxation connected tampons scrapped successful South Africa, and is moving to get a measure passed that focuses connected menstrual hygiene.

The Menstrual Health Rights Bill is backed by a corporate of 31 organisations which are campaigning for escaped play products and privation the South African authorities to recognise menstrual wellness arsenic a quality rights issue.

She says: "We wanted [the tax] scrapped connected products due to the fact that they're expensive. We are successful discussions with cardinal members of the authorities and UN women.

"It's important that we empower young women to instrumentality action. Women and girls successful agrarian areas similar Tamara's should proceed to rise their voices and travel forward."

Tamara is ambitious and wants to yet grow her enactment to different African countries. She besides wants men to beryllium alert of the value of breaking down taboos.

"Period poorness is not a women's issue, it's a societal issue," she says, "and until we tin recognize that we are not going to determination forward."