In South Africa, access to menstrual products and family planning methods such as contraceptives is a burning issue that unfairly burdens girls and women. Alarming statistics reveal that up to three million South African women are unable to afford sanitary pads, with up to 30% of girls missing school monthly for this reason.
To make matters worse, the demand for sexual and reproductive health services and resources from public clinics is high, leading to long waiting times and resource shortages, with clinics operating only during certain hours on weekdays. This scarcity of knowledge and resources exposes girls and young women to the risk of unwanted pregnancies, abuse, unsafe abortions, and other devastating outcomes that threaten their academic and personal growth.
Enter Asonele Kotu. Thanks to a US$10K grant from USADF, as part of the State Department’s Academy for Women Entrepreneurs Program, Asonele created FemConnect, a revolutionary technology platform (website and mobile app) that serves as a convenient access point for sexual and reproductive health products and services. With this funding, she set up partnerships with schools and organizations to raise awareness and organize donations to alleviate period poverty. Additionally, the funds helped her develop a sanitary pad product range and employ more staff to support the project's operations.
One of FemConnect's successful partnerships was with Womandla, where they organized a women's day campaign that enabled people to donate sanitary pads to 549 girls at Isilimela High School in Langa (South Africa) and Lend-A-Hand Africa (Nigeria). The success of Asonele's telehealth platform has allowed her to branch out and partner with organizations facilitating donations and helping girls in communities in South Africa and Nigeria.
Asonele expressed, "the USADF funding has been a blessing to the establishment and growth of who we are as a brand." Since receiving this grant, FemConnect has received international recognition and coverage for their groundbreaking work in improving women's sexual and reproductive rights in South Africa and beyond.