A Kaduna-based Non-Governmental Organization (NGO) — Eagle Lead Development Initiative (ELDI) distributed sanitary kits to 15 adolescent girls in U/Yelwa community of Chikun Local Government Area of the state.The Executive Director of the NGO, Mr Peter Ezekiel, told newsmen on Tuesday in Kaduna that the beneficiaries were selected due to the hardship they were facing, caused by COVID-19 which led to their inability to acquire such kits.
He said that the sanitary kits were provided by the UN Population Fund (UNFPA) through Education As a Vaccine (EVA) to support vulnerable Adolescent Girls and Young Women (AGYW).
He added that “we strongly appreciate UNFPA Nigeria for the support and we wish this continues for the young girls.”
He explained that issues associated with menstruation were never discussed openly “and the silence surrounding it burdens young girls by keeping them ignorant.”
He, therefore, said that during the kits distribution, the girls were educated on personal and menstrual hygiene to promote good health.
He noted that the girls were sensitised on unhygienic practices like using materials like rags, tissue paper and old clothes for menstruation which lead to many health-related issues.
The director added that “menstrual hygiene is significant for the holistic development of the female, especially the adolescent girl who will be in school and require healthy practices for equitable education to ensure gender empowerment.
“Menstruation and menstrual practices still face many social, cultural and religious restrictions which are big barriers in the path of menstrual hygiene management. “Adolescent girls have little or no knowledge about reproductive tract infections caused due to ignorance of personal hygiene during menstruation time.”
He urged mothers to educate their adolescent daughters on menstrual hygiene to avoid other infections.
Also, the Facilitator of the NGO, Divine Ezekiel, told the girls that “the use of soap and other detergents to clean the private part is wrong and can lead to genital complications.”
She said inadequate knowledge about menstruation had led to early or child marriage, harassment and teenage pregnancy among adolescent girls.
She added that awareness about menstruation could lead to better reproductive health, greater self esteem and better academic performance among girls.
She then exposed the adolescent girls to different ways they could maintain good menstrual hygiene and how to dispose the waste.