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A U.S.-based Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO), African Immigrants Resources Centre, yesterday, distributed sanitary pads to 1,348 students in Imo State, to mark this year’s International Women’s Day.
The free pads were distributed to female students of the Comprehensive Development Secondary School, Owerri as part of the NGO’s ‘Give A Girl A Pad’ (GAGAP) initiative, to commemorate the global event.
The Convener of GAGAP, Mrs Chimezie Oji-Kalu, while distributing the pads, said that the initiative was part of the organisation’s efforts to cater to the needs of the girl child.
Oji-Kalu, represented by the GAGAP Coordinator in Imo, Mrs Winifred Ijeaku, said that the initiative, among other things, was designed to help young girls avoid the mistakes of the past in the area of menstrual hygiene. She said that with the pads, problems, such as the spread of diseases and low self-esteem resulting from poor hygiene, could be avoided.
“In the past, the girl child suffered neglect and exposure to infections, but we are changing that narrative. Our vision is to eliminate period poverty, reduce absenteeism from school, and restore the dignity of the girl child as part of our contributions to preparing tomorrow’s woman. Period is supposed to end a sentence not a girl’s education,” she said.
A teacher in the school, Ms Ngozi Njoku, thanked the organisation for the GAGAP initiative and urged the students to take the lessons from the lecture seriously. She, however, called on government at all levels and well-spirited Nigerians to support the GAGAP initiative, to enable the Centre to achieve its objectives.
A student of the school, Miss Ada Ugochukwu, expressed gratitude for the free pads and health advisory. In 2025, over 4,000 girls across Abuja, Lagos, Rivers, Imo, and Nasarawa benefited from the GAGAP initiative.
