Care bag project helps women here and in PNG
WOMEN in a remote Far North town are embracing income-generating opportunities while improving the education, health and wellbeing of other girls and ladies in Papua New Guinea.
And two Cairns businesswomen are the driving force behind the initiative.
Yolonde Entsch, founder of Empowering Women Empowering Communities, has been working on the Moon Sick Care Bag project with women in the Aboriginal community of Doomadgee since August 2017.
The bags contain everything a woman needs to manage menstruation, including four washable sanitary pads, underwear and a diagram of a monthly cycle.
A group of Doomadgee women were then taught how make all the different items and in October last year 330 completed bags were handed out to women in the Western Province of Papua New Guinea.
“The bags make a tremendous difference to their lives. Instead of girls being forced to miss school each month, and women having to withdraw from family duties, they can manage menstruation with dignity and confidence,” Mrs Entsch said.
Sue Fitcher, managing director of Getaway Trekking, saw the potential and contacted Mrs Entsch about ordering some bags to distribute on the ground in PNG.
“We were very keen to get involved – our trekking business operates in PNG so we feel it’s our responsibility to provide some support to the people we work with,” Mrs Fitcher said.
A purchase order for 200 bags was made and completed by the women in November last year and are expected to arrive at a health centre in PNG in the coming weeks.