Reusable menstrual pads project

Hello!

My name is Celine Clemence Magneche Nde Sika. I’m the founder and National Coordinator of AFFAMIR https://www.affamir.com, a not-for-profit organization operating in the rural municipality of Penka Michel, Cameroon. I truly appreciate you taking a moment to read my story.

In 2002 I started AFFAMIR after founding two toddlers almost naked sleeping on the floor outside their compound, alone at home. With the support of my relatives and friends, we set up a nursery school in September 2003 so children could have a safe place where to stay, play and growth when their parents are away working. 45 students enrolled that first year. The project has since grown and today we run two modern nursery and elementary schools where between 400 and 600 children receive education every year.

Yelina is a 12-year-old girl who was a primary five student a year ago. She was one of the beneficiaries of the holistic scholarship program we implement in these two schools since a decade. Yelina became pregnant at the end of last school year after sleeping with a man in the village in exchange of menstrual pads. Now she is home taking care of her baby.

And it is not just Yelina. Julienne Marie-Noelle, Blandine and many other teenagers in the municipality (200.000 inhabitants) dropped out of school, and some were forced to get married for this same reason.

I am raising funds to continue implementing the reusable menstrual pads project we started in September 2021 so teenagers like Yelina don’t have to drop out of school, or aren’t forced to get married like Merveille; or so that women in jail like Sofina and Jakali don’t get infected because of the rags they use to manage their period.

But we cannot achieve this goal without your support.

Any money donated is so greatly appreciated and will be used to continue implementing this important project, and if you aren’t able to donate at this time, a share with your family and friends would mean a world to our Cameroonian menstruators as well.

We also accept donations in kind of material and other types of period supplies if you can provide us with : menstrual cups, disposable menstrual pads, tampons, panty period, etc.

Here is the link to the budget of the project:

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1IENXFLQEDZMPetYc0_E6yKmsJy4OfuCGIlr4eS0LILI/edit#gid=0

Thank you!