MENSTRUAL HYGIENE MANAGEMENT PROJECT (MHP)

Menstruation is an integral and normal part of human life, indeed of human existence. Menstrual hygiene is fundamental to the dignity and well-being of women and girls and an important part of the basic hygiene, sanitation, and reproductive health services to which every woman and girl has a right. Globally, approximately 52% of the female population (26% of the total population) is of reproductive age. Most of these women and girls will menstruate each month, between two and seven days.

Nonetheless, menstruation is too often considered a taboo, and has many negative cultural attitudes associated with it, including the idea that menstruating women and girls are ‘contaminated’ ‘dirty’, and ‘impure’. Women and girls in rural settings and particularly adolescent girls in schools suffer most from stigma, lack of menstrual materials, facilities, and services to help them cope with the physical and psychological pains during menstrual periods. Other challenges both at the community and school level include.
inadequate preparations for the young girls who have not yet experienced menstruation, inadequate water to clean and wash the body, lack of private space and washrooms, and inappropriate facilities for disposal of materials for those who have used pads. In spite of these issues, menstrual hygiene management has been routinely ignored by professionals in the Water Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) sector.

 Currently, the means of coping for many adolescent girls is the use of old clothes, dirty napkins, and other un-hygiene materials which exposes them to infections and disorders. Within the context of Awutu Senya East, RAHE GHANA has started baseline surveys, preliminary meetings with stakeholders, and training adolescent girls to make reusable menstrual pads (RUMPS).
Whereas some adolescent girls have been provided pads ranging from sophisticated imported pads to locally manufactured pads by RECFAM and AfriPads, teachers often struggle to provide sanitary pads to the adolescent girls from their own means. Unfortunately, adolescent girls are subject to social stigma and a greater risk of sexual assault when they begin to menstruate, further marginalizing them. and threatening them within the school and community environment.

Our surveys have shown that a total of 70% of the girl pupils report missing. 

1-3 days of school sessions per month, which translates to a loss of 8 to 24 school days per year. This means that within a term an adolescent girl may miss up to 8 days of study. Representing around 250% of missed attendance due to menstruation. The majority of these girls note that they become physically. weak and can neither concentrate on their studies nor fully participate in community life due to the isolation and stigma associated with menstruation. 82 % of the head teachers note that the girls absent themselves from adolescence during their menstrual cycle; senior women teachers further noted that they calculate around 250% of the total number of girls dropping out of adolescence due to lack of menstrual materials and above all their schools do not have satisfying menstrual facilities.

These factors have been shown to result in disproportionally high absenteeism rates among adolescent girls in basic schools, affecting educational performance and the chance of entering and completing secondary school. 

Solution
The project responds to these challenges by building the capacity of schools and teachers to improve and uphold menstrual hygiene management among girls selected from deprived public schools in vulnerable communities. The project is executed through co-curricular education on menstrual hygiene management among adolescent girls, Skills training in making reusable sanitary pads, setting up welfare counseling rooms, and conducting a series of community advocacy workshops.

Impact
1. Increased school completion rate among adolescent girls supported by this project.
2. Reduced stigma and isolation of girls from boys due to improved knowledge and understanding of menstrual hygiene.
3. Reduced school absenteeism; increased access to reusable sanitary pads
4. Confidence among adolescent girls to participate in school and community life. 

The project takes a fresh and creative approach to tackle menstrual hygiene challenges while also helping prevent girls from being lured into extremist groups. Many girls face health risks by using old or unsanitary materials during menstruation. What makes this project unique is its active engagement of girls in learning to make reusable sanitary pads – a new idea in the area. This practical skill empowers them to manage their menstrual health better and boosts their independence.

What really sets this initiative apart is its well-rounded approach. Girls not only learn the skill but also spread it within their homes and communities, creating a positive impact on hygiene practices. The project's special counseling room addresses emotional needs of menstruating girls during school, providing actual support beyond just information.
Furthermore, the project promotes fairness by educating boys about menstruation's normalcy, reducing stigma and creating a supportive atmosphere. This inclusion of boys enriches the project's impact.
In short, the project's innovation lies in teaching practical skills, providing tangible resources, and involving both girls and boys in promoting menstrual hygiene. 

The project will benefit from the oversight support of the Awutu Senya East Municipal Education Office to ensure that it intended activities are fully accomplished. The project has elements of sustainability which will guarantee continuity even when the project has officially ended. These include the transfer of skills in making local made reusable sanitary pads at, school, household and community level, the stakeholder and community.
involvement in knowledge sharing on menstrual hygiene management; and the establishment of welfare counseling rooms in each of the schools will boost teaching and learning on reproductive and sexual health in the beneficiary schools. 

❑ Through our flagship menstrual hygiene management project earmarked for 8500 adolescent
girls in the Awutu Senya East And Assin North Municipal, we are actively working to address
barriers often faced by adolescent girls in the school environment by providing safe spaces for
the girls to acquire the skills of sewing the reusable sanitary pads.
❑ We also sensitize them on resourceful knowledge and information on issues surrounding menstruation
and the need to prevent premarital and unsafe sex.
❑ Under the Menstrual Hygiene Project we have set up menstrual facilities across 55 basic
schools for girls to safely manage menstruation during school hours, thus leading to a more
supportive school environment ready for girls to be educated, respected and heard.

This project aims to address three significant challenges prevalent in schools and the community, specifically the lack of awareness regarding menstrual hygiene, inadequate access to sanitary materials and insufficient private facilities for menstruating girls. The project will actively engage girls in acquiring the skills necessary to produce reusable sanitary pads, a relatively novel concept in many underprivileged districts where menstrual hygiene management poses a more pronounced challenge. Through project assignments, girls will be encouraged to replicate these skills within their households and communities by teaching their peers, siblings, and parents.

Furthermore, the project will provide emotional and psychological support to menstruating girls during school sessions through the establishment of a welfare counseling room. This aspect sets the project apart, as most local advocacy programs focusing on menstrual hygiene solely provide informational sessions without tangible services or assets. Although the primary beneficiaries are girls, the project will also sensitize boys to perceive menstruation as a normal phenomenon and discourage any form of ridicule. Thus, the project ensures gender equity by involving boys as indirect beneficiaries.

The Municipal Education Offices will provide oversight support to ensure the successful completion of the project's intended activities. Moreover, the project incorporates elements of sustainability, ensuring continuity even after its official conclusion. These elements include transferring the skills of producing locally made reusable sanitary pads to schools, households, and the community, involving stakeholders and the community in knowledge sharing on menstrual hygiene management, and establishing welfare counseling rooms in project schools to enhance teaching and learning on reproductive and sexual health.

Notably, local female seamstresses have expressed considerable interest in mass-producing and commercializing the reusable sanitary pads. This initiative will not only generate additional income but also support livelihoods within the community.

The project selects 100 adolescent girls as target beneficiaries from Primary 5 to JHS 2 for mentorship and education on menstrual hygiene management in each school selected to participate in the project.

The MHP specifically provides education and awareness creation on menstrual hygiene, provides and improves access to sanitary materials through pilot training in sewing reusable sanitary pads, establishes welfare counselling centre in schools to help girls who menstruate during school sessions and community workshops aimed at generating communal ownership and support for the project beyond completion stage.

As part of our commitments towards the attainment of the UN Sustainable Development Goals Especially Goal 3,4,5,6 RAHE Ghana is devoted to ensuring that, about 1000 schools are earmarked to benefit from the Menstrual Hygiene Project by 2029.

Thus, every year we will be working with 143 schools to help shape the lives of over 14,000 adolescent girls in deprived communities.

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Mr. Kwame Atakorah  Position: Project Coordinator full-time staff

Mr. Rimmy Francis Amakye Executive Director full-time staff

Ms. Vera Ahensowaa Saah Position: Gender Specialist full-time staff

Ms. Mary Akosua Gyambraah Position: Youth Project Coordinator full-time staff

Ms. Afariwah Hammida Efe Position: Project Officer full-time staff

7 years 

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As production volumes of our reusable menstrual pads increase, we can take advantage of economies of scale to lower manufacturing costs. Through bulk purchasing of materials, streamlining manufacturing processes, and optimizing distribution, the unit cost of manufacturing can decrease. This scaling up of production has the potential to make our reusable pads more affordable, enhancing their cost-effectiveness compared to disposable pads. By achieving this cost-effectiveness, RAHE-GHANA will be able to produce a greater number of reusable pads, thereby positively impacting more menstruating schoolgirls.

Sustainability

The element of skills transfers in sewing the reusable sanitary pads will ensure project continuity both at school and community level after project completion.
The project activities will receive oversight responsibility and support from the Ghana Education Service where teachers will be encouraged to teach the subject of menstrual hygiene management in every academic year.
The sewing machines allocated to the project schools will enable the adolescent girls to sew the reusable sanitary materials any
time they run out of stock.
Heads of the various schools and the adolescent girls will be made to sign a memorandum of understanding to properly maintain project logistics and materials and to use them for intended project activities.
The community sensitization workshops will build communal ownership and support for the project at community level where parents and opinion leaders will appreciate the need for adolescent girls to internalize the practice of menstrual hygiene. management at all times.