The Catholic Relief Services on Friday (28 May) commemorated the Global Menstrual Hygiene Day in Bolgatanga in the Upper East Region to raise awareness on the difficulties women and girls face during menstruation.
The commemoration was organised in partnership with the Talensi, Nabdam and Mamprugu- Moaduri districts, the Upper East Regional health and education directorates and the Naa Adole Foundation.
The commemoration which was on the theme, “We are committed”, was also marked with a street march by school children from the participating districts holding placards with inscriptions such as, “Involvement of boys and men in menstrual issues is not a taboo”, “No menstruation, No procreation”, “Removal of 20% tax on single use menstrual pad is key to safe menstrual health”, among others.
Speaking at the event, the Country Representative of the Catholic Relief Services, Daniel Mumuni, noted that poor hygiene during menstruation continues to be a big challenge for women and girls all over the world, with the lack of education, poverty and lack of awareness being causative factors.
He stated that menstrual hygiene management was key to ensuring that young girls develop their full potential through education, adding that the absence of that contributed to school absenteeism of millions of girls and women globally and increased the likelihood of school dropout.
Mumuni said although there has been increased menstrual education, it was still common to see women and girls being stigmatised and mocked during their menstrual periods, a situation he bemoaned.
He stated that the commitment of stakeholders towards menstrual health and hygiene over the years has been minimal.
He said this year’s theme focused on calling stakeholders to go beyond the annual colourful events to demonstrate their commitment for the cause with increased support.
He said it was a collective responsibility to support women and girls to address menstrual difficulties so that their development, access to good quality education and employable skills are not negatively impacted.
He continued that, “menstruation is a natural phenomenon and a significant component of ladies development and reproductive processes. Our mothers went through it, our wives are going through it and our daughters will certainly go through same. We cannot stop it, but our commitment and actions can lighten burden of the journey.”
Access to menstrual pads
The Country Representative said the burden of accessing menstrual pads was a big challenge to many young girls.
He said the lack of access was driving some girls into the arms of men to offer sex in exchange for money to buy the pads.
He, therefore, called on the government to remove the 20 percent tax on menstrual pads to enable girls in the country have easy access to them.
Mumuni explained that the high cost of sanitary pads was forcing girls to resort to using materials that are not safe and hygienic during their monthly flow.
Improper disposal
For his part, the District Chief Executive for Talensi, Thomas Duanab Wuni, said an area of menstrual health and hygiene that stakeholders needed to tackle was the improper disposal of used sanitary pads.
He said due to the insoluble nature of the sanitary pads, the proper disposal of pads that have been used was imperative so it would not lead to health and environmental complications.
The DCE therefore called for collective efforts from Parents, Teachers and stakeholders to increase menstrual education among young girls.
He also urged the production of sanitary pads that do not pose risks to the environment after use.
Senyalah Castro
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