By Ogone Mokobe
Ashia Nkontsa from the Tag A Child organisation collected donations of sanitary pads for local schools with underprivileged pupils. With the school year just starting, initiatives like TAC have got the 2018 academic year off to a healthy start for local young women.
Nkontsa is originally from eRhini. Her passion for youth drove her to begin the Tag A Child (TAC) organisation. This organisation was founded in 2016 with the aim of helping underprivileged pupils in eRhini and surrounding areas. Although TAC is not yet a registered non-profit organisation, their work has had a significant impact on the local community.
The Sista Sister Sanitary Programme is an initiative started by TAC. Sanitary pads are collected from community members and distributed to pupils in need. This initiative is not only about meeting the physical needs of the learners, but about forming relationships through mentorship projects in order to assist pupils in their development.
Volunteers from Rhodes University, Radio Grahamstown assist Nkontsa in hosting workshops for pupils to educate them on sexual health, personal hygiene and changes that take place during puberty. Through the Sista Sister Sanitary Programme, TAC is essentially returning a sense of dignity to the pupils.
Many of the public schools do not have adequate library services, so TAC also collects books and hosts reading workshops to encourage reading.
TAC welcomes donations in the form of clothing, sanitary pads and books. To find out more please contact Ashia Nkontsa at tagachild@gmail.com.
