28 Feb 2023

Funds permitting, the Ministry of Education and Skills Development will provide all girls from primary through to senior secondary school with sanitary items and other necessities.

Answering a parliamentary question on February 27, minister, Dr Douglas Letsholathebe said the ministry was currently unable to provide such items for all school girls due to budgetary constraints.

He said learners were, therefore, expected to provide such items for themselves even though the ministry had a policy in place to keep some supplies of sanitary items in schools for emergency purposes.

“Despite this hardship the ministry considers all sanitary items, such as pads, tampons menstrual cups and other comparable items as basic unavoidable necessities for [female] learners,” he added.

Going forth, Dr Letsholathebe said the ministry would introspect on the clumping of all domestic supplies under one vote to possibly segregate budgets under different votes to better ensure provision of necessary sanitary items.

On tertiary institutions, he said sponsored students were provided with a monthly living allowance, which catered for meals, transport, accommodation and toiletries.

“Female learners who are registered with social protection services including orphans, vulnerable, needy or remote area dwellers are provided with sanitary items along with other basic needs on a monthly basis,” he said.

The minister also noted that cost for the provision of sanitary items in schools was included in the domestic supplies budgets given to schools to cover a wide range of items such as brooms, toilet paper, washing liquids, polish, buckets, mops and others.

“It is not possible therefore to estimate the portion of such a budget that is expended specifically on female sanitary items.

The Department of Secondary Education was provided with P240 per learner annually for all domestic supplies needs,” he said.

Member of Parliament for Selebi Phikwe West, Mr Dithapelo Keorapetse had requested the minister to give an update on whether the ministry considered free sanitary items and comparable products as basic, unavoidable necessities for female students and young women as well as whether such items were provided in public schools from primary to tertiary institutions.

Mr Keorapetse also enquired if there was a category of girls and young women who were provided with such items, or whether such was provided to all those in need.

He further sort clarity on the amount used to procedure sanitary items and related material in each category of schools in the last four financial years and if government was considering free provision of sanitary pads and related products to all Batswana females the same way government provided condoms. ENDS