Integrated Community Menstrual Hygiene Programme

Menstrual hygiene management is an essential aspect of hygiene for women and adolescent girls. Despite being an important issue regarding women and girls in the menstruating age group, menstrual hygiene management is often overlooked. For many adolescent girls in rural communities in Nigeria, getting their period means putting their lives on hold. In some communities, menstruation is associated with stigma and girls feel embarrassed and often exclude themselves from social activities during their periods. Limited access to information on menstrual hygiene management, reproductive health, and limited availability of sanitary materials to manage menstruation makes it more difficult for adolescent girls in rural communities to manage their periods effectively.

These challenges adversely affect their capacity for better learning, leading to their inability to collaborate favorably with their male counterparts in contributing to sustainable development drives, and also has the tenacity of exposing girls to Sexually Transmitted Infections like HIV/AIDS, and hepatitis.

By improving menstrual hygiene information in local communities we will tackle misconceptions, raise girl’s self-esteem and enable girls to fully participate in all aspects of society. The program will put a sharp focus on the north because it lags behind in access to information around menstrual hygiene and sexual reproductive health which endangers young adolescent girls.  

Program Goal

To educate and support 1000 adolescent girls in 10 communities with comprehensive menstrual hygiene management information and sanitary kit.

Program Objectives

• To promote accurate and comprehensive information on menstrual education management among 1000 adolescent girls.
• To engage and strengthen the capacity of local community leaders and stakeholders to address potential concerns about menstruation in 10 communities.

• To mitigate the lack of access to menstrual products through the donation of 1000 sanitary kits.

Methodology

To achieve the above-stated goals and objectives, three (3) distinct strategies will be utilized:

• Community Adolescent Education Sessions
• Stakeholders Engagement and Education
• Distributions of Sanitary Kits.

The Integrated Community Menstrual Hygiene Management Program is a well-designed menstrual education and support initiative that captures and spotlights the challenges of girls during and after their menstrual cycle, countering misinformation that makes girls vulnerable to sexual predators, uninformed decisions, as well as other harmful menstrual practices, aiding them to have control over the surging sexual hormones, that could make them susceptible to unprotected sexual encounters. A study posted on health.com has shown that sexually transmitted infections pose a slightly larger threat when a lady is on her period than on non-period days, sighting that blood-borne sexually transmitted infections like HIV and hepatitis love the nutrients that a period has to offer, and unprotected sexual practices is a no as it gives room for unintended pregnancies too.

Teaching adolescent girls about menstrual hygiene management we strongly believe will aid them to make informed decisions, and empower them to adopt positive health and social behaviors that will aid to prevent new HIV infections arising from myths that it is safe to have unprotected sex during menstrual periods, which some adolescent girls have fallen prey of.