Free sanitary pads program rolls out to public restrooms

A sign outside the second-floor women's restroom at a sports center in Eunpyeong District, northern Seoul, points visitors to something new inside: a small box mounted on the wall that dispenses free sanitary pads one at a time.

The box is part of a pilot program known as Sanitary Pads for All (translated), which the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family launched Monday to stock free menstrual pads in public buildings so that anyone can pick one up when the need arises. It is running in 12 areas across the country.

The pads are being placed at community service centers, public libraries and youth centers. The pilot covers Gwangjin District in eastern Seoul and Eunpyeong District; Gwangmyeong and Suwon in Gyeonggi; Seocheon in South Chungcheong; Jung District in Daejeon; Jeongeup in North Jeolla; Mokpo in South Jeolla; Buk District in Gwangju; Gumi in North Gyeongsang; Geochang County in South Gyeongsang; and the city of Jeju.

Each pack holds two medium-size cotton pads from KleanNara's Pure Cotton Zero line, stamped with the program's name.

The pads come from two kinds of dispensers. The manual version, a box installed mainly inside women's restrooms, holds up to 18 packs.

Starting July 20, automatic dispensers will go up in spots such as the areas just outside restrooms; each holds 170 packs and uses Internet of Things (IoT) sensors to track stock and flag refills in real time. To discourage misuse, the automatic units impose a 20-second wait between consecutive withdrawals so people take only what they need.

For some users, the appeal was immediate.

"It looks useful for when you forget and leave them at home," Park Jin-a, who had come to the Eunpyeong Tongil-ro Sports Center to swim, said the box would help in a pinch. "Sometimes your period starts without warning, and I think these would come in handy then."

The program also reached facilities for people with disabilities. At a district-run center in Eunpyeong District where dispensers were installed in two restrooms for women with disabilities, staff said the pads filled a real gap.

"Disabled people who use the center often came to the office asking for pads even before the program began," a staff member at the center said. "It was hard for those with limited mobility or communication difficulties to get one quickly in an urgent moment."

Not everyone was convinced.

"When you're out, someone nearby can lend you a pad, or you can just buy one at a convenience store," Moon, a member of the sports center, said. "Setting up separate public pads feels like something of a waste of taxes."

Others raised worries about theft. 

"With the manual dispensers, I'm concerned one person could take several," Jeong, who only gave their surname, said. 

The Gender Ministry said it was weighing safeguards.

"If we see indiscriminate use, we are also considering having people verify their identity by phone through a QR code on the automatic dispensers before taking a pad," a ministry official said.

The ministry said it would review how often the pads are used, how well the policy works and how satisfied people are on the ground, then expand the program nationwide next year.

BY KIM NAM-YOUNG [[email protected]]