Group decries impact of menstrual poverty on Gombe school girls

No fewer than 50 girls from nine schools in the Funakaye Local Government Area of Gombe State have benefitted from a sensitisation lecture on the importance of menstrual hygiene among girls.

Speaking during the lecture held on Tuesday, the Executive Director of Jewel Health and Development Initiative, Abubakar Hussaini, said the occasion was held in commemoration of the International Day of the Girl Child, stressing that girls deserve adequate care and support.

PUNCH Healthwise reports that the one-day lecture was organised in collaboration with the Civil Society Action Coalition on Education for All, supported by the global partnership for education and EducationOutLoud

According to him, lack of information on menstrual hygiene has a negative impact on school attendance, adding that it also impedes girls’ psyche.

He said, “We gathered 50 girls from nine schools from Bajoga in the Funakaye LGA in Gombe State, and we gathered them to commemorate the International Day of Girl Child. The idea is to sensitise the girl child on the importance of hygiene, and the need to embrace education.”

Speaking further, Hussaini explained that stakeholders have underscored the impact of hygiene in girls’ school attendance, adding that during the menstrual circle, many girls abscond for fear of getting stained.

“Hygiene is very important in the life of human beings as well as education, especially during the menstruation period, when girls abscond from school. One of the areas we felt we should encourage them is even if they are on their period, they can still come to school, take care of themselves, be guided on how they will take care of themselves and be told they can attend school and do other things in life.

“Research was conducted and the result showed that most of the girls don’t attend school during their periods because they don’t want to be stained and that it makes them uncomfortable and inferior among their fellow students. So we aligned the issue of personal hygiene to education for them to know that they can be able to take care of themselves as well as attend classes,” Hussaini added.

Also speaking, Hajiya Aishatu Bala, the Head Teacher of the girl child school in the Bajoga community, noted that personal hygiene is very important to the girl child, adding, “because they need it more than the male child because of the nature of the girl child body.”

Commenting further, Bala added that she talked about how to take care of different parts of the body from the scalp up to the legs.

“We talked about how they will take care of themselves during their menstrual period which is the most challenging part of their life in the school. I have seen female students stained in the classroom without knowing because they didn’t know the date of their next period. So I taught them how to prevent it from reoccurring next time,” she added.

Explaining their efforts as teachers to help those who develop early, Bala said, “In primary schools, very few girls see their menstruation, so when we realise such a situation, we call them personally into the office.

“We talk to them and educate them on how to maintain personal hygiene. We also encourage them not to be scared because it is something that occurs to every female child and not something new.

“At times, when they are having menstrual cramps, we send them back home and give them two to three days to stay at home to take care of their health. Sometimes, we usually send some of our teachers to parents to let them know what happened so that mothers can guide them at home.”

On her part, the Headmistress, Model Primary School Bajoga, Hafsat Umar, who facilitated the session on maintaining prestige, enjoined the young girls to be assertive.

She said, “They should maintain their prestige and shouldn’t allow men to destroy their prestige. They should be guided by their parents’ advice. Also to take care of themselves properly in school”

Umar disclosed that challenges faced mostly emanate from their parents, “they want them to get married early and thereby stop them from going to school,” she said

She called on the government to mobilise people that would educate and counsel parents in the various communities, stressing, “give them orientation, and also offer the girls free education from primary school to SS3, or possibly, to higher institution.”

SOURCE: PUNCH

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