An estimated 30% of girls in South Africa miss school when menstruating, due to limited access to menstrual hygiene products. The lack of access to menstruation education and menstrual hygiene products is a major socio-economic problem in the country.
Spur Corporation and Imbumba Foundation under the Caring4Girls initiative launched a partnership in February 2023 to assist school girls with sanitary products and support. The partnership will involve creating the first official case study for the programme by following the same girls from Grade 8 until their matric year with baseline and impact studies. The analysis will determine and guide the value of menstrual hygiene support and associated education on girls throughout their schooling career.
As the programme progresses, Spur Corporation will explore opportunities for the Sidima Sisters team and Spur Corporation staff to mentor shining stars within the target beneficiary group and offer intern opportunities. Spur Corporation hopes to increase the number of girls they support to 1000 girls over the next five years.
In the first year of the partnership, more than 15 000 packs of pads were supplied to more than 300 Grade 8 learners in the Western Cape and Gauteng. These girls have graduated to Grade 9 and as part of the partnership will be supported throughout their high school career.
This year, Spur Corporation has increased its donations by supporting two new schools in KwaZulu-Natal and Nelspruit as part of the second cohort. More than 20 000 packs will be distributed.
Beneficiaries receive four packs of sanitary towels monthly, a puberty education booklet, an annual menstrual hygiene educational talk as well as interactive peer group dialogues at schools. The dialogues will include topics such as puberty, menstruation, teenage pregnancy prevention, and gender-based violence.
The Caring4Girls programme was established in 2012 by Mr Richard Mabaso, the CEO of the Imbumba Foundation. The programme supports girls with sanitary towels, puberty, and menstrual hygiene education to keep them in school. To date the programme has empowered over 1,8 million girl children and counting across South Africa and neighbouring countries.
Founder and CEO of the Imbumba Foundation, Richard Mabaso says “It is these long-term partnerships that allow the Caring4Girls programme to make a real impact on the outcome of our beneficiaries’ performance and ensure that girl children are given the opportunity to grow into young women with dignity and confidence. This will allow them to become future leaders in their own communities, contributing socially and economically to building a better society.”
The Spur Corporation CEO, Val Nichas, appointed an all-female project team to create an initiative impacting female staff members, as well as the greater community the Group serves. Sidima Sisters was formulated, and the initial project entailed the availability of sanitary products for the Head Office staff, which then expanded into the current outreach project.
Spur Corporation CEO, Val Nichas says, “These young girls are leaders of our future families, companies, and country. The care and consideration they are given today in their youth will set the foundation on how they treat others going forward. We need to ensure that all women, especially young girls at this tender age, are treated with care, respect, and dignity. We believe in women of the future”.
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