Menstrual help for women in Pakistan

Many of the more than 8 million women of reproductive age affected by Pakistan’s unprecedented floods have been turning to desperate measures to manage their periods. “It was heartbreaking,” One woman in the hard-hit province of Balochistan, who are using tree leaves.

Floods have inundated one-third of Pakistan and displaced more than 33 million people. The waters have also killed more than 1,400 individuals and destroyed hundreds of thousands of houses, as well as bridges and roads. More than 660,000 people are still living in relief camps and makeshift homes.

A woman in  PAKISTAN  had to use tree leaves to manage her period.

To support women affected by floods, VOV INTERNATIONAL is delivering:

• underwear
• cotton pads
• menstrual hygiene info

In routine life women can’t afford because Pakistani government put lots of luxury tax on menstrual products.

Now the urgent need is:

1. Underwear
2. Cotton pads
3. Menstrual hygiene kits

Voice of the voiceless international along with, relief workers, and public health advocates have long called for Pakistan to remove its luxury tax on menstrual products.

“Menstrual kits and sanitary napkins should be cheap but the taxes on them are so high people cannot afford it.

As menstrual products are not affordable, majority Pakistani women will have no choice but to rely on private organizations for help in managing periods and especially in this brutal flood time as they lost their everything.

From 2019 to 2021, voice of voiceless international team conducted fieldwork on menstrual hygiene among women aged 14-49 in different district, and province of Pakistan, and especially the area hit hard by the recent floods. About 40% of the 25,000 women surveyed in Dado were not using any pads or napkins during their periods but instead would repeatedly change out of and wash their stained clothes.

“Many were not aware of reusable pads or the availability of pads. They thought it was very expensive and ‘We can’t afford it,’ Then they came up with three kinds of kits. One contains a pack of sanitary napkins and underwear, the second small towels and underwear, while the third consists of cotton pads. Diagrams accompany the kits, showing the right way to use the products.

Different circumstances determine which items are most effective. DURING flood waters haven’t receded, cloth towels may present problems as there is no clean water to wash and dry them.