Keep Girls in School
In rural Ghana, 95% of girls in rural areas reported missing school during their periods. Without access to affordable menstrual products and proper sanitation, girls may try to manage using old newspapers or even tree bark, but soon give up. The discomfort and embarrassment often mean that getting their period means putting education — and their future — on hold.
THE YONKOFA PROJECT provides hygiene kits to girls enrolled in junior high in the districts we serve—about 800 girls each year! The hygiene kits include washable, reusable sanitary napkins, a leak-proof/wet bag, instructions for use, a soap sack, underwear, and a cloth backpack. The nurses and school headmasters are also given teaching materials.
The pad and health kits are made and assembled by THE YONKOFA PROJECT’S family of volunteers across the country. The finished kits are delivered to Ghana with our regular delivery of medical supplies.
Do you like to sew? Is your church or community group looking for a way to help girls stay in school? Consider making pads and other materials for the Keep Girls in School project. You can find instructions, videos, and patterns linked here:
Menstural Pad * Instruction Video * Pattern #1 * Pattern #2 * Draw-string Backpack * Soap Sack * Wet Bag
“We appreciate the help of Crafting Change, whose many volunteers have made pads and other hygiene materials for the girls of Western Ghana. The instruction videos and patterns are available to you, thanks to Crafting Change. Thanks also to the many ‘craftivists’ who give time and talent to this work. Your help has made a life-changing difference for young girls in western Ghana”
Shipping your work to THE YONKOFA PROJECT is just $20 per box through GiveBackBox. Please include this PACKING SLIP in each box that is shipped.
Mail your items to Yonkofa, for delivery to Ghana
The Yonkofa Project-Keep Girls in School c/o Rapid Aviation, 4777 Aviation Pkwy, Suite H Atlanta, GA 30349
Questions? Ask Linda Wuest at lindawuest4@gmail.com
Keep Girls in School was inspired by George Forson, a physician’s assistant at the Yonkofa Health Centre in Yiwabra-Nkwanta.
“I found that young girls started missing school at a certain age, often for a week each month. They could not find or afford menstrual pads and became embarrassed at school. Some of the top students even dropped out. These young ladies could have been doctors or nurses. I started buying pads for them myself and asked Dr. Nanci for help. Now, thanks to Yonkofa friends in America, many of the girls can receive supplies and will stay in school. Your gift is for a bright future for wonderful, smart young girls.”