Kupang City Government Rolls Out Ina Kasih Program to Help Poor Women Access Free Sanitary Pads

The Kupang City Government, in East Nusa Tenggara (NTT), has launched the Ina Kasih programme as an effort to tackle menstrual poverty among women from very low-income households. The programme provides free sanitary pads to women who are in the extreme poverty line. Deputy Mayor of Kupang, Serena Cosgrova Francis, said the programme targets women and adolescent girls whose family monthly income is under Rp500,000. ‘The Ina Kasih programme is free sanitary pad assistance from the Kupang City Government for women in poverty, especially those at the extreme poverty line,’ she said during an audience at Media Indonesia’s office in Jakarta, on Thursday, 5 March. Serena explained that the term Ina Kasih has a special meaning. ‘Ina’ comes from the local language meaning ‘woman’, while ‘Kasih’ is the nickname for Kupang. The programme is intended as a manifestation of empathy and care by the Kupang City Government for women. She noted that menstrual poverty remains a reality in Kupang, particularly among the bottom two income deciles. ‘Women have to spend Rp20,000 to Rp60,000 on sanitary pads each month. If a family earns less than Rp500,000, roughly 5–10% of their income is spent on this,’ she said. She argued that this should not be the case because menstruation is a biological process that cannot be avoided. ‘The government must be present to meet women’s basic health needs. In countries such as Australia and New Zealand, pad subsidies have been implemented,’ she added. Beyond cost, Serena also highlighted the stigma and taboos surrounding reproductive health and menstruation in the community. ‘This is a health issue that should be understood by both women and men,’ she said. In the initial phase, the Ina Kasih programme has reached 1,275 Women of Reproductive Age (WRA) living in extreme poverty, including women with disabilities. In Kupang City itself, 37,142 residents fall into decile 1 and decile 2 of a total population of around 442,000 across 51 urban villages. Serena said pad assistance is distributed monthly through the Family Hope Programme (PKH) involving several local agencies. ‘Distribution is carried out by the Department for Women’s Empowerment and Children’s Protection, in cooperation with the Health Department and the Social Department,’ she added. Looking ahead, the city government aims to expand beneficiaries to 3,000 women, in line with the Kupang City Regional Revenue and Expenditure Budget (APBD). In addition to sanitary pads, the city government is integrating the programme with free Human Papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination. According to Serena, this vaccination is important to prevent cervical cancer, a major health threat to women. ‘The HPV vaccine is usually expensive. For one woman with three doses it can cost around Rp9 million. Therefore we want to ensure that poor women can also access it,’ she said. In the initial phase, 50 women received the HPV vaccine symbolically. Going forward, the city government targets 5,000 women to receive the vaccine for free. Serena also called on Media Indonesia to collaborate in promoting the Ina Kasih programme so more people understand the importance of attention to women’s reproductive health. ‘It is fundamental that many leaders see development in terms of its physical aspect, but when we talk about development, we cannot ignore people, how they can gain freedom, rights, and access to basic needs that the government should provide,’ she concluded. (E-4) The Kupang City Government, East Nusa Tenggara (NTT), is stepping up efforts to stabilise food prices ahead of and during the Ramadan period. Deputy Mayor of Kupang, Serena Cosgrova Francis, met with Deputy Minister of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (UMKM) Helvi Moraza to discuss increasing the number of creative economy actors in the region. Copyright @ 2026 Media Group - mediaindonesia. All Rights Reserved