In Minna, the capital of Niger State, a 15-year-old named Raheema Auwal-Panti noticed something that others had overlooked: the agricultural waste streaming out of Nigeria's cassava processing plants could solve two problems at once. Traditional sanitary pads contain up to 90% plastic and take hundreds of years to decompose, leaving women caught between inadequate access to menstrual products and the environmental damage caused by the ones that are available. But cassava peelings, dried banana leaves, and corn husks—biomass-rich materials that would otherwise contaminate soil and water—could become something safer, more sustainable, and more dignified.
In 2025, Auwal-Panti founded PantiPads, a company dedicated to turning low-grade agricultural waste into biodegradable sanitary pads. Her vision addresses what remains a significant public health challenge across Africa: menstrual stigma and access, which directly affects girls' education and well-being. "Even if no one does something about it, I could do something about it," she said, driven by a determination to sweep up plastic pollution in her country.
The waste streams Auwal-Panti targets are abundant in northern Nigeria, where cassava processing generates substantial quantities of solid and liquid byproducts. Left unmanaged, this biomass leads to widespread environmental degradation. By converting it into menstrual products, she's creating a circular economy that benefits both public health and the environment—a rare double win. The pads themselves are safer, too. Many women using conventional products expose themselves to chemicals and plastics in contact with some of the body's most sensitive tissues. Biodegradable alternatives eliminate that risk.
"The current options aren't very safe," Auwal-Panti explained. "People have a very safe option in eco-friendly sanitary pads." Her words carry the weight of direct knowledge: she understands that menstrual product choice is not merely environmental—it is deeply personal and tied to bodily autonomy and safety.
The recognition has already begun. PantiPads was selected among just 35 global teams shortlisted for the 2026 Earth Prize, an award organized by the Earth Foundation, a Switzerland-based nonprofit that supports young people tackling environmental challenges. This distinction underscores the project's significance in a crowded field of innovation.
Currently, PantiPads is building relationships with existing manufacturers while working to bring products directly to consumers, supported by members of the business community. Auwal-Panti is thoughtful about scaling: her long-term goal is to establish a dedicated local production space, but she's prioritizing learning the production system thoroughly before expanding into independent manufacturing. This measured approach suggests maturity beyond her years.
Yet her ambitions extend beyond business. Auwal-Panti has called for African governments to play an active role in policy shifts that would transition from plastic to biodegradable menstrual products. She recognizes that individual innovation, however vital, must be paired with systemic change. As PantiPads continues its campaign to sensitize people to sustainable alternatives, it carries a message that reaches far beyond Nigeria: that environmental protection and women's health are not separate concerns, but intertwined, and that young people in developing nations are already leading the way forward.