Tabitha Cumi Foundation, has urged schools to include menstrual hygiene management in their development plans to cater for the menstrual needs of girls during school hours.
The Foundation’s Executive Director, Tayo Erinle, made the call in Abuja at an Endline Dissemination meeting on the Impact assessment of the “Always Keeping Girls in School Project” (AKGIS) sponsored by Procter and Gamble.
According to her, the outcome of the project has helped to boost the confidence of school girls in discussing issues regarding their menstruation and increased retention of marginalizedHealth girls in schools due to the use of pads and other menstrual hygiene products.
“Girls are now aware about menstruation, and they are not being told taboos or myths, they are given the right information.
“Their dignity and confidence have been built because they can now go and access menstrual products wherever they are not ashamed.
”Also, the boys have been carried along and they are now more supportive.
“Menstrual hygiene management in their school development plans so that they can keep equipping the sanitary boxes that have been provided,” she said.
Also, Victoria Aleogena, a menstrual hygiene management consultant, advocated the continued involvement of boys and men in menstrual hygiene management sensitisation as they were important in providing support to girls to remain in school.
“We have found situations where girls stay out of school because of the boys, because they make fun of them.
“Bringing them on board and making them feel they are important too is fundamental in establishing lasting solution on menstrual hygiene management,” she said.
On her part, Ms Angeleen Nkwocha, representative of the Ministry of Women Affairs, said due to the vulnerable nature of the girl child, it was fundamental for all stakeholders to take the hygiene management of girls as a priority.
Similarly, the Principal, Junior Secondary School Kuchigoro,Afolabi Abiodun, said the AKGIS project had helped to break the barriers and misconception on menstruation.
Abiodun, therefore, stressed the need to include men and boys in subsequent campaigns on the welfare of the girl child to enable them to understand and show support to them.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that other recommendations from the Endline dissemination findings on the AKGIS project include the provision of Water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) facilities in schools.
Others are sustained availability of sanitary pads to meet the needs of school girls in cases of menstrual emergencies.
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