Sew Powerful Purse Program Overview
How Reusable Pads are the Key Drivers to Local Employment and Educational Advances
Program Purpose: Sew Powerful volunteers are working hard to combat extreme poverty in Zambia, Africa, one of the poorest countries in the world. Our program takes the beautiful purses made by our volunteers, ships them to Zambia where they are filled with reusable feminine hygiene supplies, soap, and underwear. Then in health training classes, the filled purses are given to the schoolgirls, so they have the supplies to attend school all month and improve their academic performance. The purse and supplies become a life-altering gift for the girl, her family, and her community.
In the International Relief and Development community (aka World Health Organization, UNICEF, Gates Foundation, etc.) this topic is called MHM, (Menstrual Health Management or Menstrual Hygiene Management). You can read the World Health Organization statement on menstrual heath here. There is a ‘Period Gap’ that we want to bridge. Learn more about the exciting results Sew Powerful has seen by distributing the purses since 2014.
Why does Sew Powerful advocate for reusable Feminine Hygiene Products? It is important to understand the current products available to these girls and what happens if they don’t have access to any solutions. There are basically two commonly used personal care items for women in Zambia and many African nations: disposables and reusables.
Why Not Disposables? While disposable, single-use products, just like those used by women in the western world, are available in retail stores in Zambia, there are three reasons why this is not a practical solution in Zambia:
1. Availability – In rural settings, such as villages and remote locations, retail stores are either not present and/or would have such a limited inventory of products, women could not count on the stores as a reliable source.
2. Cost – Zambia is one of the poorest nations on earth. Many people live below the poverty level. Having to spend a family’s very limited income on anything except the basics of food and shelter is beyond the means of most of the population.
3. Refuge – Most communities do not have home garbage service. Therefore, used menstrual products would have to be disposed of in outhouses, open sewage areas, or burned. Whatever disposal method is used creates not only unsanitary conditions, but surely an ecological nightmare.
In our view no disposable product solution makes sense in the rural (village) or urban (slum) context. Disposables are a western convenience product that doesn’t translate into poor communities. Simply “gifting” disposable pads into poor communities won’t solve the sanitation related problems and is misguided half-measure.
The Value Of Our Reusable Pad (MHM) Product: We aren’t claiming to be experts on the topic of Menstrual Health Management (MHM), but we are professional seamstresses, designers, and product marketers. So, we bring some competency to this issue. We learned a lot about this topic from Days For Girls, (they are great, and have a different delivery model than we do, but clearly they pioneered this topic in some ways). We also admire AFRIpads.com, a social enterprise that started in Uganda and now serves more than 40 countries. They have a very similar approach to ours. One key difference between AFRIpads and Sew Powerful is they have a large sales team that sells their product to non-profit organizations, retailers, and other organizations and businesses, whereas Sew Powerful gives the filled purses to schoolgirls as a gift.
The Winning Product – Reusables: In our view – it is obvious – a well-designed reusable pad product, that can be made very inexpensively in-country, then used by well-informed women and girls, or explained by trusted local health workers and educators via schools, is the winning product solution. We think it is highly unlikely that any large consumer packaging goods company will introduce a reusable menstrual solution because of course, they like the income from reselling disposables.
A Modern Approach: Before 2022, the girls and women in Zambia who received the reusable feminine hygiene pads made by our seamstresses in Lusaka and Livingstone, were able to attend school, go to work, and enjoy a freedom they never experienced before Sew Powerful came along. This was a freedom many of us have taken for granted our entire lives. But the product we were producing in Zambia was almost the same product our grandmothers and great grandmothers used in the early 20th century. In the past 100 years remarkable improvements have been made in menstrual health supplies for those who can afford to purchase the myriad of products that offer comfort, sanitation and freedom; products that we, our daughters and granddaughters use and now consider to be the norm. But starting in 2022, through the generosity of our donors, Sew Powerful was able to convert pad production in Lusaka and Livingstone to modern 21st century standards. Now our seamstresses produce Safe Pads®, an anti-microbial, super absorbent, comfortable pad. Each purse given to a schoolgirl is filled with 4 day pads, 2 night pads, a bar of soap, and 2 pairs of underwear.
Our Unique Product Packaging, The Sew Powerful Purse: You might wonder why we ask those who love to sew from around the world to download our Sew Powerful Purse pattern, sew purses, and send them to us. The answer is simple. We need the help and support of the global sewing community to tackle this issue. We also need a beautiful product package, and what is more beautiful than amazing hand-made purses? Involving the western volunteers accomplishes these two vitally important goals.
Some people ask, “Why not make the purses locally in Lusaka too? Why have volunteers around the world participate?” And we say, “Because we want passionate participation from around the world so together, we can scale up the program, spread the word, fund the program growth, and utilize all their amazing fabric, machines, and social connections.”
Some people ask, “Why not have the volunteers make the reusable pads too, and do the whole thing outside Zambia and send it in as a charitable gift?” And we say, “Because we have a sewing cooperative in Lusaka and Livingstone. The local moms there need good paying jobs. If the volunteers did all the work, it would destroy the opportunity for local seamstresses to earn a living, assist in tackling poverty, and it would disempower them.”
Yes – Girls Are Really Missing School Because Of This Issue: We have personally validated in the Ngombe community that girls do commonly stay home when they are on their period, (we watched the hands raised as they answered the questions). Statistically it has been documented that girls in Africa miss about 6 weeks of school each year for this reason. That creates a massive disadvantage compared to the boys in school. Learn about the Period Gap.
Why The 7th Grade Exam Is So Critical: In Sub-Saharan Africa, the predominant school system approach is a British system with Primary School and Secondary School. The 7th Grade exam is used to determine whether a child can move on to Secondary School. If they fail, their academic career is over. So, ensuring that girls pass this test is critical.
We Need Two Purses for Every Girl: The first comment we heard from our local program staff, after seeing the value of the purses and reusable pads, was that the sisters, moms, cousins of the girls were desperate for supplies too. The sisters and cousins wanted to go to school, and the moms needed to work. One purse full of supplies just wasn’t enough for a household. It could leave the girls in the same circumstance as before – without any solution for managing their periods. So, we developed a “household” solution. We decided the most practical way to achieve this is to give each girl a purse for themselves and one for their mom or caretaker, which may be an aunt or female extended family member.
Additional Supplies Must Be Provided: We’ve also learned that the girls in Ngombe don’t have more than one pair of underwear. We didn’t believe this could be true, but we watched as the girls were asked to raise their hands to confirm – yes – almost all of them had only one pair. Wow. Nor do they have soap for doing laundry at their house, a key part of the reusable pad method. So, we factored into our Sew Powerful Purse program the cost of one bar of laundry soap and two pair of underwear, all sourced locally in Zambia. Donations cover the cost of labor and materials to fill each purse. Learn more about the cost to fill a purse here.
Growing The Sewing Cooperative: There are so many “wins” related to this program for all involved, our purse makers around the world, the schools, the sewing cooperative women in Lusaka and Livingstone, and the schoolgirls. We’re thrilled that this program gives the seamstresses good, solid work to support themselves and their family. The wage they earn puts food on the table, a roof over their head, and allows them to cover the cost of sending their children to school. In addition, many seamstresses use part of their earnings to support other family members outside of their immediate household.
For more information and details about the founding of Sew Powerful, life in Zambia, and the ministry itself, you will want to read We Are Sew Powerful, by Jason and Cinnamon Miles. The second edition of the best seller is available for your Kindle reader or in paperback on Amazon.com.