Menstrual Health and Environmental Hygiene

Dear valued supporters,

Thank you for your continued support and belief in our mission. We are happy to share our progress on the Menstrual Health and Environmental Hygiene project.

While our project awaits full funding, we are far from idle. This quarter, we have strengthened our preparation, relationship-building, and community engagement to ensure our project’s success. We remain deeply committed to transforming menstrual health education and environmental hygiene in the communities we serve.

Despite funding challenges, our volunteers have been on the ground making a difference:

• We continue to mentor young girls on safe and healthy menstrual practices, helping them understand their bodies and manage their periods with confidence despite limited resources.
• Conducting site assessments, meeting with community leaders and school heads, and identifying participants who will benefit from our menstrual health kits and education programmes once funding is secured.

Voices from the Community

During our recent outreach, we met Grace, a 15-year-old student from the Oshie community who shared her struggles with managing menstruation; ‘Sometimes I stay home from school for three days each month because I don’t have pads,’ she told us. I stay out of classes, and I feel ashamed.

Grace’s story is not unique. In the communities we serve, many girls face this same barrier monthly. They miss school, experience stigma, and resort to unhygienic materials that put their health at risk. You can hear the challenges girls like Grace face directly from Akaragwe, a school head, in this testimonial video we have recorded:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1xfnOlOdTgh8v28GQvdxyhTjrQsgEEdz2/view?usp=sharing

These conversations remind us why this work matters. No girl should miss school because of her period.

Menstrual health is more than a health issue. It is about dignity, equality, and opportunity. When girls lack access to menstrual products and education, they:

• Miss an average of 3-5 days of school per month, staying behind academically
• Face increased health risks from using unhygienic materials
• Experience shame and social isolation during menstruation

Without intervention, this cycle continues, limiting the potential of an entire generation of young women.

How Your Support Create Change

Every dollar goes directly toward:

• Purchasing environmentally friendly, washable pads that girls can use for up to three years, eliminating monthly costs and reducing waste.
• Organising education workshops and training girls on menstrual health, hygiene practices, and SRHR.
• Support environmental hygiene education and basic sanitation infrastructure improvement in rural schools.

We invite you to stay connected as we continue this important work. You can stay updated on our progress and share our mission by visiting our project page: https://www.globalgiving.org/projects/menstrual-health-and-environmental-hygiene/ 

Your belief in our mission sustains us during this challenging time. Together, we are building a future where every girl can manage her menstrual health with dignity, attend school consistently, and reach her full potential.

With gratitude,

Afor Rene Aza’ah

Executive Director