Setting up a SafepadTM Production

 Menstrual Health Issues  

500 millions of women globally is in shortage of appropriate facilities for menstrual hygiene management (MHM). Poor menstrual hygiene is present with harmful side effects:

.Vaginal infections 

. School dropouts due to no knowledge of managing their menstruation and not being able  to partake in school activities. 

. Prostitution that caused women expose to sexually transmitted disease (STD) in order to sustain their needs such as pads and many more.     

· Inequality between genders is an issue concerning the individuals and the society in general because of poor education, unwanted pregnancies, taboos, and stigmatization.

Many developing countries exists poor menstrual hygiene resulted by lack of access to proper menstrual products and information. Thus, setting up a SafepadTM production and making a quality menstrual hygiene products, providing a proper educational information within reach will offer girls and women the long-waited solution and conclusively break the silence surround MHM.

 Menstrual Health Management is linked with health, well-being, gender, education, equity, empowerment and rights; yet, often because of its cross-sectoral nature, MHM is rarely addressed in major funding, research or policy agendas. 

One of the core problems involved in poor MHM is lack of access to proper menstrual products and information. There are several negative side effects connected to poor menstrual hygiene. One of them being vaginal infections.  

Another negative side effect is their inability to attend school and/or work during menstruation which again affects her income generating possibilities. 

Overall it affects societal development and the potential for economic growth.We need to break this cycle by reaching out to offer a sustainable solution for all girls and women.

The Covid-19 has unfortunately further worsened pre-existing inequalities, discrimination and marginalisation of women and girls in more ways than one. Consequently, “period poverty” is already a reality for women and girls living in poor, rural and marginalised communities and covid19 has increased this issue. Women who rely on daily wages that allow them to access necessities such as sanitary products, have lost their jobs and this has gravely affected their livelihood.

Building SafepadTM Production

This will benefit the community by capacitating local women, reducing waste and enabling girls and women to be active members of their community. 

We aim to partner with local and National Government to supply schools with Safepads and thereby alleviate the issue of school absenteeism due to lack of menstrual wear. Furthermore we strive to collaborate with like minded initiatives and campaigns to raise the awareness of Period Poverty and Menstrual Stigma. 

Safepad Technology

Safepad™ is constructed with a fabric that has a permanently bonded anti- microbial shield. This shield is formed by a chain of carbon atoms with a built- in positively charged Nitrogen atom and attached to a Silica layer that  forms the bond to the  fabric.

The core principle of action: All pathogens (incl. bacteria, fungi such as Candida Albicans) are negatively charged. The shield on Safepad™ has a positive charge and it attracts the pathogens. 

The Carbon atom chain acts as knives & kills the pathogen. This shield is permanent and does not deteriorate in use or washing.

A Livelihood Projects for women and girls must be initiated through setting up a SafepadTM local production. It is a great way of promoting menstrual hygiene management (MHM) such as communicating the importance of sanitation. It is also a big step towards safeguarding the dignity, bodily integrity and overall life opportunities of women and girls in the post-modern world. In addition,  women self-help groups will be within reach to support supply to rural areas and this will encourage the aspiring female entrepreneurs, girls and women in income generating activities.

This project aims to:     Empower Women   ;  Build local capacity

Create sustainable business (NOT AID) directly with and within the community ; Share commitment and learning

Create lasting value and sustainability

Ensure direct community involvement

Offer a structure approach to unstructured challenges like poverty alleviation and sustained job creation.

What Real Relief has initiated is what we believed is of great value for women and girls, empower them to contribute in a beneficial  way locally and a chance to gain employment hence,  this will be a momentum for MHM to improve ‘girls’ and ‘women’s’  menstrual health.

Many developing countries exists poor menstrual hygiene resulted by lack of access to proper menstrual products and information. Therefore, setting up a sustainable SafepadTM production and making  quality menstrual hygiene products combined with the availability of the proper educational information will offer girls and women the long-waited solution and conclusively break the silence surround MHM.

• Create job opportunities for locals
• Women Empowerment – local capacity building
• Sustainable business (NOT AID) directly with and within the community
• Shared commitment and learning
• Creating lasting value and sustainability
• Direct community involvement
• Structured approach to unstructured challenges like poverty alleviation and sustained job creation

Safepad™ is constructed with a fabric that has a permanently bonded anti- microbial shield. This shield is formed by a chain of carbon atoms with a built- in positively charged Nitrogen atom and attached to a Silica layer that  forms the bond to the  fabric.

The core principle of action: All pathogens (incl. bacteria, fungi such as Candida Albicans) are negatively charged. The shield on Safepad™ has a positive charge and it attracts the pathogens. The Carbon atom chain acts as knives & kills the pathogen. This shield is permanent and does not deteriorate in use or washing.

Key findings are that there is a relatively good user acceptability level and that the product performs well. The major areas for improvement identified by the studies have been since  

1. Safepad has a tendency of being too slippery in the panties and therefore causing leakage. 

2. Problems with washing and drying the pads, mainly due to privacy issues. To deal with the issues,  we have experimented with different alternative back sides, that gives higher abrasion against the panties and an improved alternative has been deployed, secondly we have added 1 extra push-button, to give the user the possibility to mount the pad more tightly in the panty. Regarding the issue of privacy when washing and drying the Safepad, we have developed a washing bag that can be used for both washing and drying of the pad. When the pad is inside the bag, it is difficult to see what is inside. 

Safepad™ is constructed with a fabric that has a permanently bonded anti- microbial shield. This shield is formed by a chain of carbon atoms with a built- in positively charged Nitrogen atom and attached to a Silica layer that  forms the bond to the  fabric.

The core principle of action: All pathogens (incl. bacteria, fungi such as Candida Albicans) are negatively charged. The shield on Safepad™ has a positive charge and it attracts the pathogens. The Carbon atom chain acts as knives & kills the pathogen. This shield is permanent and does not deteriorate in use or washing.

Safepad is a reusable sanitary pad made of very durable polyester material and is the first pad globally to introduce an antimicrobial treatment. The antimicrobial treatment makes Safepad self-disinfecting both during use and after washing, also if contaminated water is used to wash it. Safepad thereby helps reducing the risk of vaginal infections by 99,9% (See attached laboratory test result)

If care instructions are followed and a woman has at least 4 pads at her disposal, Safepad has an estimated life time of at least 2 years. The antimicrobial treatment on Safepad is permanent. It does not get consumed over time and it also does not release antimicrobial substances that potentially could harm the natural microbial fauna of the female vagina.  

Safepad™ antimicrobial reusable sanitary pad

We have performed four field studies: Iraq with Terre des Hommes; Myanmar with Solidarités International; Jordan with UNHCR/ACF/UNICEF; Iraq with CARE.  We also performed tests of the efficacy of the antimicrobial treatment on Safepad. 

The field studies conclude that there is a high degree of user acceptance, lowest is 50% and highest is 97%. The drying time is also evaluated and found to be between 0.5 – 3 hours depending on the weather conditions. This is very important, as the drying time of the pads is one of the main determining factors for how many pads the individual woman needs. The problem areas identified by the studies have been addressed in the newest version of Safepad. Safepad deals with the problems associated with reusable sanitary pads and therefore presents a unique opportunity to unlock the vast advantages of using reusable sanitary pads, i.e. 99% menstrual waste reduction, reduced distribution cost, reduced product cost for the user and or the humanitarian organisation

Safepad  is working towards creating more awareness about Period Poverty and these issues surrounding this. We strive to make Safepad available to all girls and women and improve women's/ girls' personal and collective well being and increasing social cohesion. This will benefit the community by capacitating local women, reducing waste and enabling girls and women to be active members of their community. 

With education and access to information all girls/women can achieve better chances at success and dignity. It is a fact that thousands of girls  have to struggle with the most natural part of being a female. No one should have to be embarrassed or disempowered by their menstrual periods. 

To reach out to as many girls and women as possible, Safepad   works towards partnering with grassroot organizations to help reach and distribute Safepads into the affected communities. We aim to partner with local and National Government to supply schools with Safepads and thereby alleviate the issue of school absenteeism due to lack of menstrual wear. Furthermore we strive to collaborate with like minded initiatives and campaigns to raise the awareness of Period Poverty and Menstrual Stigma. 

MoH, NGOs and others involved in the distribution of menstrual products

We want to make a real difference in the lives of millions of vulnerable people, across the globe.

Whatever their predicament, we want to support them in improving their own living conditions.