The Resurging Value of Civil Society for Indian Crafts
Breaking the mould of the stigma associated with menstruation has always been challenging especially in rural areas. According to the National Family Health Survey, 62% of women in rural areas use cloth, old rags, muds or leaves for menstrual protection. This situation exists not only due to lack of awareness on menstrual hygiene but also of non-access to affordable sanitary pads. This time, the solution proposed by DEF’s Smartpur initiative was not only to create awareness around the topic but also to make affordable sanitary napkins available to the girls and women in the community. A team of women entrepreneurs in Barabanki, Uttar Pradesh started the production and marketing of reusable, sustainable and cotton pads called “SMARTPAD”. It is a great combination of Health, Education and Livelihood.
The initiative is playing a huge role is solving the menstrual hygiene crisis at the rural level. Along with providing a safe and more hygienic alternative to cloth, Smartpad is creating an alternate source of livelihood for many women. Training on pad-making helped women understand how they can set up a production unit and earn from this initiative. A training session by Smriti Kedia from Jatan Sansthan went a long way in enabling small lever rural entrepreneurs. Moreover, DEF had also provided a capsule training and discussed theory of menstruation, critical review of myths and taboos, understanding sustainability and menstrual management and product assessment.
DEF is paving the way for women empowerment through small changes one at a time.
To extend support to our rural entrepreneurs order a set of 2 Smartpad for Rs 100.
Contact Kiran Gupta (+91 8090145580) or Utkarsh Rajawat (+91 8115706195)
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