In many developing nations, girls use folded cloth pads—known in Jamaica as bongbo cloth—due to poverty. This true story from my childhood in a rural public school exposes the hidden struggle of girls managing their periods in silence, risking their health, dignity, and dreams.
Discover the untold realities behind period poverty and what communities and faith groups must do.
I grew up in a dusty rural village, attending a public school with cement floors, wooden desks, and tin roofs that rattled when it rained.
We had fun, sure — climbing trees, dodging homework, chasing footballs barefoot.
But there was something I didn’t understand as a boy back then:
Why did some girls go silent once a month? Why did they sit stiffly, avoid playing, or even stay home altogether?
Then one day, I saw it. A girl quietly tied her sweater around her waist and slipped out of assembly. Some boys whispered, some laughed — but I just stood there, confused.
Later, I overheard older girls talk about it.
“Her bongbo cloth moved.” “She stained.”
That was the first time I learned what bongbo cloth meant — tiny pieces of cloth, folded and wrapped to mimic a pad. What we now call a local padded cloth material, or a folded cloth pad.
Not a sanitary pad.
Not proper menstrual protection.
Just an old wrapper, a torn shirt, a piece of curtain — whatever was available.
Not by choice, but because poverty offered no alternatives.
The Hidden Cost: Education, Confidence, and Dignity
When girls don’t have safe menstrual products, they lose more than comfort — they lose opportunity.
- Education: Some miss 3–5 days of school every month. That adds up to 60+ days a year — two full months of missed learning.
- Fertility: These cloths, often reused and poorly cleaned, cause infections that can lead to pelvic inflammatory disease, UTIs, and even future infertility.
- Dignity: But what struck me most — even as a child — was what it did to their confidence.
They stopped raising their hands in class.
They avoided eye contact.
They no longer ran during break or played games.
They lived in fear of one thing: leaking.
That fear became shame. That shame became silence.
And over time, silence became their normal.
They Didn’t Feel Dirty — But Treated Like They Were
Many of these girls weren’t shy — they were scared.
Scared of jokes. Of stains. Of being called names.
Some of them used folded cloth pads so long that they developed rashes or infections — and didn’t tell anyone.
When you bleed every month and no one talks about it, not even your parents…
You start to feel like your body is a burden.
They were not less intelligent. Not less capable.
But because they were born into poverty — and because pads were too expensive — they bled in silence, and lost pieces of their self-worth.
This is the cruel reality of period poverty.
The Day We Shared Pads on a Mission Trip
Years later, I joined a mission outreach to a remote village.
We brought food, prayers, and hygiene supplies — including packs of sanitary pads.
I’ll never forget when we handed them out.
The girls looked confused. Some asked,
“What is this for?”
“Is it safe?”
“Wouldn’t food be better?”
They had never even used one.
Some still preferred their bongbo cloth — not because it was better, but because it was all they knew.
And that’s when it hit me:
This is bigger than giving. It’s about educating. Sensitizing. Breaking the silence.
Pads alone won’t fix this.
We must also change minds — and teach the truth.
A Call to Governments, Faith Groups & Parents
We cannot continue pretending this is a “girl’s issue.” It’s a human issue, a national issue, a moral issue.
Governments must:
- Remove taxes on sanitary pads
- Subsidize them in schools and health centers
- Include menstrual health in public education
Churches, Mosques, and Religious Leaders must:
- Speak openly about periods — not shamefully
- Host hygiene talks in youth and women’s groups
- Support pad drives and local education
Parents must:
- Talk with their daughters early and often
- Teach how to clean and dispose properly
- Fund pads as a priority — not a luxury
Let’s End Period Poverty, Not Ignore It
No girl should have to fold up old rags and pray they don’t leak.
No girl should lose school days because of her biology.
No girl should bleed in shame when she was meant to stand in strength.
A pad may look like a small thing — but it carries a girl’s education, health, and dignity.
Let’s stop the silence.
Let’s break the shame.
Let’s build communities where bongbo cloth is no longer a forced option — but a thing of the past.
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