Uganda’s First Lady and Minister of Education and Sports, Janet Museveni, has welcomed a potential investment from South Africa’s VEB Group to manufacture biodegradable, single-use sanitary pads from banana fibre – but issued a firm warning against any compromise on quality.
Museveni described her meeting with the South African investors as “pleasing”, noting the project could boost girls’ hygiene, add value to Uganda’s agriculture and promote environmental sustainability. However, she quickly drew a red line. “It is very difficult for me to accept that industries should be put in place to manufacture reusable pads just for Africa,” she said. “Our children are as sensitive, they are as deserving… We do not want to give up on the decency of using what others use.”
Speaking as a mother of girls, Museveni declared she could never buy reusable pads for her own daughters and therefore would not accept them for any Ugandan child. “The dignity of the girl child is non-negotiable,” she stressed, warning that affordability challenges should never lead to “permanent compromises on quality”.
The remarks come amid ongoing national efforts to keep girls in school through better menstrual hygiene management. Museveni ended with a call for hard work and divine guidance: “Our children must also know that they have to work harder and get what they want in life.”
Her intervention signals that while Uganda remains open to green innovation and job-creating investment, the dignity and equality of its girls remain non-negotiable.
