A sewing room in Addis Ababa turns out pads that girls can wash and reuse

In a small workshop in Addis Ababa, women are sewing washable cotton pads that can be used for up to two years. Africanews, citing AFP, reported on November 9, 2026, that founder Hanan Ahmed, 41, left fashion work to start Han's With Care in 2021 after years of missing school because disposable pads leaked and cost more than her family could manage. Ethiopia imports its disposable pads. Ahmed said the price puts them out of reach for many girls, and that a period can mean days away from class.

The workshop's capacity is about 1,000 pads a day. Sponsors, including banks, pay for pads that are then given away. At Nigat Kokeb School, a 15-year-old student told AFP the cloth pads were less likely to leak onto her clothes and could be washed and used again. Teacher Tigist Shewangizaw said the school talks with girls before a first period so they are less likely to stay home out of fear. Ahmed said stigma is still strong in parts of the country, including places where a girl can be kept apart from her household, and that she marks her own daughter's period at home as something to talk about rather than hide. The news is this workshop, the giveaway pads, and the school sessions. It is not a national supply of menstrual products.