Menstruation, Sports and Dignity in the Rainy Season

As the rainy season settles in, female athletes across Zimbabwe are forced to navigate a challenge rarely discussed in sports circles: how to manage menstruation when the weather works against them. What should be a routine part of life can become a logistical, financial and emotional hurdle — one that shapes whether girls stay on the field or sit out.

Athletes Finding Their Own Hacks

For athletes like handball player Michelle Masawi, rainy-season preparation has become a ritual.
“I pack double — extra pads, extra tights, and something dark. Rain just makes everything feel exposed, so preparation is everything,” she says.

Sprinter Michelle Zuze has switched to menstrual cups because “they don’t shift during long sessions,” while rugby player Fadzai Mandizha insists that confidence is just as important as biology:

“Periods shouldn’t stop anyone from playing. It’s about knowing your body and having the right products.”

Coaches are adapting too. Coach Choice Dambuza has introduced menstrual-health workshops and made sure her club keeps a stash of emergency supplies.
“Comfort equals performance,” she says. “If girls feel secure, the weather becomes a secondary issue.”

When Weather Meets the Wallet

The cost of menstrual products remains a barrier to period dignity in Zimbabwe. A pack of regular pads now ranges between US$1 and US$3.00, depending on brand and location. For many rural girls, that small cost is prohibitive; some NGOs estimate that 1 in 5 girls still misses school during their period due to lack of products or inadequate facilities.

Zimbabwe rolled out a sanitary wear distribution programmes in schools a couple of years back, but implementation has been sketchy with many schools reporting never receiving the pads.

While menstrual cups and reusable pads offer longer-term savings, upfront costs (US$10–US$15 per cup; US$3–$7 per reusable pad) keep them out of reach for many families.

Across Zimbabwe, some organizations have stepped in. The Flame of Life Foundation, which distributes period-proof underwear, reports that many girls still rely on cloth, especially during the rainy season when drying reusable materials becomes harder.

Founder Sheila Muzambe says:
“We want girls to feel secure at school and on the field. Period dignity shouldn’t depend on where you live, or what month it is.”

But the programming is not comprehensive enough to cover all girls. This is in sharp contrast to countries like Kenya and South Africa, where large-scale government or corporate programmes have helped make reusable options more mainstream.

The Rural Reality: Pads, Privacy and the Power of Water

In rural schools, the conversation extends beyond products. Water access — crucial for hygiene — becomes even more strained during the rainy season. Soaked uniforms, muddy grounds and inadequate disposal systems make managing periods a daily negotiation.

At Nyamidzi High School, Head Elina Kaluwa says there is progress but gaps remain:
“We hold Guidance and Counselling sessions on menstrual hygiene, and we keep emergency pads. But when it rains heavily, girls struggle with privacy, and sometimes our supplies run out.”

Many rural toilets lack bins, soap, or clean running water — conditions that compromise both comfort and dignity.

A Season Shouldn’t Decide Participation

Globally, sports institutions are beginning to treat menstrual management as part of athlete welfare — from dedicated facilities at UK schools to reusable-pad drives among Kenyan girls’ football clubs.

The SADC Hygiene Strategy 2021–2025 places menstrual hygiene within a broader regional commitment to water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH). The strategy calls on member states to strengthen “an enabling policy environment for hygiene services and practices,” and emphasises the link between access to clean water, safe sanitation and “dignified hygiene for women and girls.”

Although not menstruation-specific, the document explicitly notes that improving hygiene services must address gendered needs and vulnerabilities — a framework that governments are expected to domesticate through national school-health, sports, and community-level programmes.

 In practice, this means adequate water supply, private changing spaces, proper disposal systems and access to hygiene products — all of which remain uneven across much of the region, especially during the rainy season.

Here at home, the rainy season exposes the cracks: cost, stigma, lack of water, and limited infrastructure. Yet it also reveals a growing movement — coaches, principals, NGOs and athletes — working to make sure girls don’t have to choose between natural biology and their passion for sport.

Because, rain or shine, menstrual dignity is not seasonal.