Menstrual Hygiene Day (MHD, MH Day in short) is an annual awareness day on May 28 to highlight the importance of good menstrual hygiene management (MHM) at a global level.
In developing countries, women’s choices of menstrual hygiene materials are often limited by the costs, availability and social norms.
Adequate sanitation facilities and access to feminine hygiene products are important but opening discussion making adequate education for women and girls is of equal importance. Research has found that not having access to menstrual hygiene management products can keep girls home from school during their period each month.
Therefore Menstrual Hygiene Day is an occasion for publicizing information in the media, including social media, organized gatherings and to engage decision-makers in policy dialogue. The day aims to advocate for the integration of menstrual hygiene management into global, national and local policies and programs.
More specifically MH day;
- breaks the silence, raises awareness and changes negative social norms around MHH, and
- engages decision-makers to increase the political priority and catalyse action for MHH, at global, national and local levels.
MH Day has grown tremendously since it was first celebrated in 2014
In emulating the same objective Kasese District and her development partners commemorated the day on 21st July 2023 at Ngaiga Primary School, in Maliba Town council-Kasese District under the global theme “Making menstruation a normal fact of life by 2030”.
A highly attended event that commenced with a band around the Town council had several primary and secondary schools’ students and teachers including parents and several stakeholders.
Performance after performance, presentation after the other clearly communicated the awareness about menstrual hygiene and the reason why it is necessary to create awareness if girls must stay in school.
Speaking at the function the team leader at Save the Children Kasese field office highlighted that Girls lose 10% of their time during menstruation time as revealed by a research conducted by SNV, he challenged partners to do more research and prioritize MH in their programming.
The chief guest of the function the Kasese District Woman MP, Hon.Kabugho Florence appreciated the District and Partners for having organized the function and asked that this should be a continuous engagement since it’s a normal thing that Government and partners should continue addressing.
She emphasized the hands on skills trainings for the make of reusable sanitary pads at schools so as to help them, Providing Wash rooms at schools specifically for this purpose since this was one of the biggest issues reported from schools reports. Hon. Florence also promised that as Women Parliamentarians, they are trying to find ways of providing sanitary pads freely to girls. She wondered why condoms were provided freely even when sex is a choice unlike menstruation.
She also warned some men who are raping their very own children to stop that very dangerous that was being reported in some areas. The Hon. Chief guest encouraged students to continue studying irrespective of their schools and also Requested the District Education office to consider having more female teachers in schools that have less on non to help girls during their period days.
The Hon. MP led the District and partners in signing a charter that read as follows;
Honourable Member of Parliament Kabugho Florence signing the charter. Several other partners and the District leadership signed this charter and committed to follow the contents therein to the dot.
Gender-Environment and Development Action committed too to the charter as this is also very key in our programming as an institution.
Partners also contributed items including sanitary pads and nickers that were distributed to the schools in attendance. The items were handed over to the District Education department by the Hon. Chief guest.
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