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By Sunday Ani
A nongovernmental organisation, Girls Inspired Development Network, in collaboration with a real estate company, Abode Assets Limited, has taken the campaign to enlighten female students on menstrual hygiene management to secondary schools.
Speaking at the Birrell Secondary School, Yaba, Lagos, where 60 young girls were mentored last week, the Programmes Manager, GIDN, Bukola Adeboye, said the organisation discovered that most girls were ignorant of what menstrual hygiene management is all about.
She lamented that most girls stay away from school during their menstrual period because they feel ashamed, and stressed that the campaign would offer them the opportunity to understand what the cycle is all about and be confident to talk about it.
“A lot of girls don’t even know what menstrual hygiene management means; they don’t know how to calculate their period or how to keep themselves clean. When we asked them how many of them had started seeing their menses, many of them were shy while very many others were just laughing. They couldn’t speak confidently about it.
“So, these are the gaps we see in young girls that we try as much as possible to bridge and ensure that they can speak confidently about themselves and feel safe even while menstruating.
“We discovered that attendance has reduced in classes because most girls will not go to school during their menstrual period. We assure them that they don’t need to stay at home because they are menstruating.
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“A lot of them are battling menstrual period poverty; so they lack the money to get sanitary pads. I was amazed to find that one sanitary pad costs N900 and it is not every girl that can afford it and that is a problem on its own. So, these are the gaps we are trying to fill, ensuring that we speak to a lot of companies to support our initiative and ensure that young girls get the information that is needed.
On their partnership with Abode, she said: “Abode reached out to us to say they wanted to do something for society as part of their corporate social responsibility (CSR) engagements and their third anniversary. We felt that we could do mentorship sessions for girls on menstrual hygiene management. A lot of companies just distribute items but this is not just about distributing items; it is about ensuring there is an impact of what we are doing. Don’t just go there and give them pads and go away but ensure that you mentor them on how to make use of the items provided.”
She noted that apart from menstrual pads and other items, the girls were given a menstrual tracking book, which contains information that helps the girls to track menstrual cycle, maintain good hygiene, stay informed about their health and note their period’s dates, symptoms and feelings. “Some months, the girls can feel cranky but when they look at the book, there are measures that can help them stay safe and cool,” she added.
Also speaking at the event, the Client Support Lead, Abode Assets Limited, Aderonke Haasptrup, said her company is passionate about making impact in society and having seen the various works that GIDN has done in the past, including inspiring young girls to be confident and bold in what they do, it decided to go into partnership with it in that regard.
“This is to help the younger generation. Even though they are not participating in real estate, they can be inspired and empowered when they get to that stage in life. They will be armed with enough information without any barrier.
“We have seen the various works GIDN have done in the past and how they inspire young girls to be confident and bold in what they are doing; that informed the partnership. That’s what our company is all about; to empower people. People that never saw the future in something, we open their eyes to see the future in it and encourage them to do better.
“Again, it looks like ladies have a lot of limitations but in that limitation lies power and strength and they need somebody to show them that truly they have strength within them. So, that is why Abode Asset Limited chose the Girls Inspired.
Co-founders of Abode, Oshokoya Damilare and Jeffrrey Ehikioya Itepu noted that apart from giving the girls items such as pads, sanitary towels, knapsack, hand towels and soap, they were also equipped with the knowledge on how to handle menstrual hygiene.
“We are also giving them a period calendar, which will help them to calculate their menstrual cycle accurately. We are also empowering them through education because some of them don’t even understand what the menstrual cycle is; they just feel it is pain and stress and they don’t want it. We are here to educate and enlighten them so that they can see that beyond the menstrual period, there is a strength that comes with it if only they can harness it and use it to their own advantage,” they stated.
