Many females in Pakistan have long been challenged with inaccessibility to menstrual hygiene products for a long time now, and have to face the often daunting difficulties of period emergencies in professional and academic circles as well. According to statistics, 79 percent of women in Pakistan find it hard to manage their periods well, and one out of three girls drop out of school as soon as they reach puberty on account of the taboos surrounding menstruation, shame, and the inability to access feminine hygiene products.
A femtech startup called ‘Wonder Women’, which is based in Takhleeq Business Incubator, Lahore is creating “Asani” for females to help them manage their time of the month hygienically at their workplaces and educational institutions.
Besides the clever and apt wordplay, Asani is a sanitary pad dispensing vending machine that is installed in female restrooms. Its mission is to create ease and convenience for females by facilitating them with quick and convenient access to menstrual hygiene products via wall-mounted vending machines.
Asani is currently operational at the University of Central Punjab, Lahore, and has been welcomed with rejoicing, love, and support from the university’s student community. The initiative will soon be extended to other institutions and workplaces across the country.
The Canadian High Commissioner to Pakistan Wendy Gilmour commented:
A great initiative: Feminine products should be available in all schools and public washrooms!
The co-founder and CEO of Wonder Women Muhammad Uzair Masood explained:
We have made the product after following a product development journey of 3 years. I know the idea, on the whole, is brilliant but if a woman at the time of need is unable to get a sanitary napkin from the machine, it’s equally disastrous. Keeping in view all the possibilities we have genuinely tried to improve accessibility through a mix of hardware and software solutions. Our goal is to make Asani available everywhere throughout Pakistan.
Wonder Women aims to improve the circumstances for menstrual hygiene both in Pakistan and worldwide and has some exciting upcoming products to offer comfort and ease for managing periods hygienically.