Periods and the impact on girls education.

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This blog post is dedicated to the International Day of the Girl Child, which takes place every October 11. In addressing challenges faced by girls, an important one to overcome is unequal access to education for the girl child. To achieve a more inclusive educational environment, one of the barriers that needs to be tackled is periods - because menstruation should not be a barrier to education!

To illuminate just how periods are currently affecting girls' education around the world, here are some statistics from MHDay (menstrualhygieneday.org) :

• In the United States, 1 out of 4 students have struggled to afford period products.
• In Pakistan, 3 out of 4 girls don't receive education about menstruation in school.
• In Bhutan, 1 in 3 girls miss school during menstruation because they're afraid others will make fun of them.
• In South Africa, 1 out of 5 girls miss an average of 18 days of school per year because of menstruation.

Clearly the problem is not limited to a particular country or region. As the statistics above indicate, it is widespread.

There are a number of steps a school can take to ensure it gives every girl an education unaffected by her periods :

1. Teaching girls about menstruation before they get their first period and letting them know they can speak to someone when they do. This will help prepare them, so they don't feel caught off guard, confused, and unable to reach out for advice on managing their periods.
2. Adopting zero tolerance for period shaming from peers and teachers alike. Clearing the classroom of taboos and stigma will prevent young girls from internalising feelings of shame and humiliation for simply menstruating. This will lead to less absences while menstruating.
3. Having adequate sanitation facilities where girls can change and dispose menstrual products and thus maintain menstrual hygiene.
4. Provide free, accessible menstrual products for those who cannot otherwise afford them. No one should have to choose between buying menstrual products and other basic necessities, such as food. There shouldn't be uncertainty as to whether they will have access to the required products. Having reliable access to period products is important to ensure that all girls attend school even when they're menstruating.  

I would like to stress the obvious fact that access to education is a fundamental human right. Adopting such measures mentioned above will ensure girls can have an equal chance at an education as their male counterparts. Empowering girls today will have far-reaching benefits for the future because girls have limitless potential once we remove the unnecessary gender barriers!

Does your educational institution or the educational institutions in your local area do enough to tackle period poverty and stigma within their educational settings? If not, let them know it and, better yet, let them know what more they can do!