In a bid to promote girl-child support and hygiene education, the Rare Vision Foundation has distributed sanitary pads to over 300 school and community girls in Bekwarra local government area of Cross River State.
The initiative, aptly named “Operation Pad a Girl,” aims to mitigate the incidence of girls dropping out of school due to menstrual related issues and prevent infections resulting from unhealthy menstrual practices.
The sanitary pads were distributed to some community girls in the popular community market and also visited about five community schools in Bekwarra Local Government Area.
The foundation’s founder, Mrs. Ukeh Omang, emphasized the need for government policy to promote menstrual hygiene management in rural areas, where girls often lack access to basic sanitary products.
“In rural areas, girls do not have basic access to sanitary products. It is safe to say that the majority of the girls in rural areas in the country cannot afford safe and hygienic sanitary pads for proper menstrual hygiene management,” she stated.
The foundation has been providing monthly sanitary supplies to communities that cannot afford them, with the goal of keeping girls in school and preventing complications arising from improper menstrual hygiene. The initiative has received positive feedback from beneficiaries, who expressed gratitude for the support.
The Rare Vision Foundation is calling on well-meaning Nigerians, the government, and international organizations to support their efforts to distribute more sanitary pads to other parts of the country and provide training for women to become financially independent.