Menstrual Hygiene Matters: A Dignified Girl Project
On September 28th, ENS Akwaaba Foundation in collaboration with Action at Home Group, a youth group undertook a project dubbed A Dignified Girl Project, which focused on educating young girls on Menstrual Hygiene Management. This project is the first ever project organized by ENS Akwaaba Foundation, a non-profit organization working to improve the quality of education, health & well-being of children and families in peri-urban communities.
This project was conducted in two schools; Christ the King of Kings and Bishop’s Mix schools, both in Jamestown. Girls of age 9-14 were educated on puberty, managing a hygienic period, and disorders related to menstruation. There were demonstrations on how to calculate their menstrual cycle, how to fix sanitary pads and how to properly dispose off used sanitary pads.
It was discovered that girls in both schools were shy to ask questions and respond to questions. Girls were encouraged to ask and respond to questions and were also made aware that menstruation is a natural occurrence and that it was nothing to be ashamed of. Girls who were still shy to ask questions were asked to pen down their questions on a piece of paper. All questions were answered by the coordinators at the end of the session. The session was ended by providing sanitary pads to the girls.
Young boys of the above mentioned schools were not left out in this project. They were educated on personal hygiene, puberty, environmental pollution, and also educated on not shaming or teasing girls during their period as it may affect their self-confidence and self-esteem.
With this project, we aim to impact over 1000 thousand young girls in peri-urban and rural communities by educating them on Menstrual Hygiene Management and distributing free sanitary pads to them. This way girls wouldn’t have to miss school only because they cannot afford sanitary pads.
A heartfelt appreciation goes out to a total of 28 volunteers from Ghana, Benin, Nigeria, Ivory Coast, Germany and France who came together to support a worthy cause.