Menstrual Hygiene Day aims to break taboos
Limited access to hygienic menstrual products and poor sanitation infrastructure undermines educational opportunities.
TODAY marks Menstrual Hygiene Day, an annual awareness day on 28 May to highlight the importance of good menstrual hygiene management. It was initiated by the German-based NGO WASH United in 2014 and aims to benefit women and girls worldwide.
On the Menstrual Hygiene Day website a statement reads, “Poor menstrual hygiene caused by a lack of education on the issue, persisting taboos and stigma, limited access to hygienic menstrual products and poor sanitation infrastructure undermines the educational opportunities, health and overall social status of women and girls around the world.”
According to the website, Menstrual Hygiene Day (MH Day) is a global advocacy platform that brings together the voices and actions of non-profits, government agencies, individuals, the private sector and the media to promote good menstrual hygiene management (MHM) for all women and girls.
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This year’s theme is, It’s Time for Action which aims to break taboos surrounding menstruation, raise awareness of the importance of good menstrual hygiene management worldwide. In a statement the South African Department of Women said they had introduced a number of interventions to ensure that indigent women and girls are able to manage their menstrual cycle with dignity.
“In October 2018 the Minister of Finance announced the provision of free sanitary products to school-girls in non-fee paying schools. In the 2019/2020 budget, National Treasury made available R157 million to provide free sanitary pads to quintile 1-3 schools across the provinces of the country,” the department said.
What’s more in January this year The National Student Financial Aid Scheme’s (NSFAS) decided to allocate R275 per month to nearly 800 000 students for personal care.
“This allocation takes into account the whole life of the student, who comes from an economically poor background, and offers support to both young men and women to take care of their personal hygiene requirements,” the Department of Women added.
The Department of Women continues to champion the Sanitary Dignity Programme to provide free sanitary products to indigent women and girls in quintiles 1-3 schools.
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