Menstruation misery for schoolgirls as sanitation woes hit hopes for the future

[undeterred]

Charities launch world's first menstrual hygiene day to combat stigma and shame caused by inadequate toilet facilities

Tahmeena Bax
theguardian.com, Wednesday 28 May 2014 08.09 EDT


Lydia, 16, who is sometimes forced to miss school because of inadequate sanitation facilities. Photograph: Benedicte Desrus/WaterAid

In a slum in Kampala, Uganda, 16-year-old Lydia dreams of becoming a doctor. But she worries that the amount of schooling she misses every time she has her period is scuppering her chances of success. "We are sharing the toilets with the boys, and we fear when we go to the toilets [they] will be in there. And so we don't go to school when we have our periods," she says.

Lydia's mixed-sex school has just four latrines for more than 2,000 students, which means that she risks public humiliation every time she uses the facilities. "Some toilets don't have doors and so we fear to enter as people can see or enter the toilets at any time. At the toilets, they don't have water to flush or wash, and so it's complicated to attend school when I have my period."

The plight of girls such as Lydia has prompted several charities to try to boost awareness of women's sanitary needs during menstruation. The coalition – which includes Water Aid, Save the Children, the Institute of Reproductive Health, International Rescue, and Plan – has launched the world's first menstrual hygiene day on 28 May to draw attention to the many girls forced to miss school each month because of inadequate toilet or washing facilities and insufficient access to sanitary towels.

Unesco, the UN's educational, scientific and cultural organisation, estimates that one in 10 girls in Africa will miss school during their period and eventually drop out of school as a result. In India, 66% of girls' schools do not have a functioning toilet. One school study in Ethiopia reported that more than 50% of girls miss between one and four days of school per month due to menstruation.

http://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2014/may/28/period-misery-schoolgirls-menstruation-sanitation-shame-stigma

[TreasonousBastard]

1. OK, as a middle-class white guy it is...

often tough enough to get my head around the problems of people I don't directly relate to.

But this is something so far from me that I never imagined it.

Shacked and saddened don't begin to express it.

[undeterred]

2. Thanks for reading.

Yeah, its really sad to think that the inability to manage a normal bodily function interferes with a girls education and aspirations.

Today is the first worldwide "Menstrual Hygiene Day" - this story shows why there is a need to draw attention to this subject. I hope that affordable solutions are on the way to all those who need them.

[undeterred]

3. Female parliamentarians want free sanitary pads for Uganda’s schoolgirls

Female parliamentarians want free sanitary pads for Uganda’s schoolgirls
Posted on May 28, 2014 by dietvorst

Uganda’s female parliamentarians led by controversial Speaker of Parliament Hon. Rebecca Kadaga have called on the government to provide sanitary pads for all schoolgirls in the Universal Primary Education (UPE) programme. Kadaga launched her call at the Annual General Meeting of the Uganda Women Parliamentary Association (UWOPA) on 16 May 2014.

Cover MHM study UgandaThe call was spurred by IRC’s research with SNV in Ugandan schools, which showed there is a higher likelihood of adolescent girls staying home during their periods. Girls in the 140 schools surveyed reported missing from 8 to 24 school days per year, resulting in lagging behind or some dropping out of school.

In August this year, IRC will present results from the Uganda study at the Menstrual Hygiene Management Conference taking place in Kampala, Uganda. NETWAS Uganda and partners are organising this event to encourage learning about what can be done to improve menstrual management in schools, institutions and communities.

http://sanitationupdates.wordpress.com/2014/05/28/female-parliamentarians-want-free-sanitary-pads-for-ugandas-schoolgirls/

Glad they have some female parlimentarians!