Post Event Press Release For Menstrual Hygiene Day (Ajose Foundation X GWP)

Ajose foundation was founded by Her Excellency Mrs Bamidele Abiodun, a business woman, humanitarian and wife of Mr Dapo Abiodun (MFR), the Governor of Ogun state Nigeria. This foundation is to work in partnership with the Ogun state Government, civil society and other organisations to create better livelihoods for the people of Ogun state by focusing on their health care and education, providing for their welfare and special needs and fighting against sexual and gender base violence.

On the 28^th of May, 2021 the Ajose foundation had a joint outreach with Caring for Girls with Period Initiative (GWP) at the Conference Hotel, Oke-Mosan, Abeokuta, Ogun State to commemorate Menstrual Hygiene day. In attendance were the First lady of Ogun state, H.E. Mrs Bamidele Abiodun, the Honourable commissioner for Health, Ogun state, Dr Tomi Coker, Commissioner for Women Affairs, Honourable Funmi Efuwape, Commissioner for Education Prof. Abayomi Arigbabu (FMAN), Moyin Johnson, special assistant to the first lady of Ogun state, Mrs Dayo Benjamin Laniyi, the official event anchor/compere amongst other dignitaries.

Also, in attendance were some of the female students of Baptist Girls College, Ogun State, Abeokuta Grammar School, Lisabi Grammar School, Egba Comprehensive High School and Agunbiade United Victory High School, along side their Staff and school representatives

Coming in with the welcome address, Dr Femi Coker stated how excited she was to be in the midst of women who also had a passion for menstrual hygiene management and talked about how it is a pressing concern for underprivileged females, she mentioned the average statistics of female children born to every household and mentioned that the girls could be exposed to numerous infections ranging from UTI’s to severe bacterial infections if they lack the resources to handle their period from the onset, she ended by saying how grateful she is for the Ajose foundation and the endless possibilities it holds for the Ogun state natives.

Anchoring the event, Mrs Dayo gave a small pep talk about getting stained in public, she said “even we mummies get stained when transitioning into menopause because of the irregularity of our flow and its nothing to be ashamed about, it’s all part of your journey”. Patricia Vin-Okopi, the founder and CEO of Caring for Girls With Period Initiative (GWP) started her address by letting the girls know that their period  is their super power, along the line she gave a short story about her high school classmate who got stained in class and was made fun of by the boys, she was so traumatized that she missed school for a month. She advised about the stigma that comes with period/ stain shaming and asked all females to be there for each other at all times. She elaborated on this by advising them to have an extra pad in their bag in case of emergencies, she further gave a visual display on how to properly fix a pad and dispose it afterwards, then called on a student to give a simulation of the process.

The commissioner for Education expressed his joy to be a part of the initiative, he told us about his personal experience with his daughter and how he had no clue of what to do but he is grateful for all he has learnt so far about menstruation and the girl child, he further said males should not be excluded from the menstruation discussion because they also have a huge role to play in it. Hon. Funmi Efuwape reminded the girls that knowing how to calculate their menstrual cycle is of optimum importance and that having a heavy flow is normal as long as you’ve seen your doctors about it, she shared a personal experience about how she got stained in NYSC camp and people thought she had a miscarriage because of the extremity of the flow, but she didn’t let that affect her confidence, she went back to her hostel got cleaned up and bounced back to the parade ground confidently. She disclosed that confidence should be worn like a crown on every girl child.

Selected students from the schools came to the podium to grace us with their mind blowing articles and poems. The Chairperson; Family Health Initiative (FHI) and some other dignitaries shared their own personal experiences and add-ons about menstruation, it was indeed a very engaging and interesting session.

In her address, the First Lady H.E. Mrs Bamidele Abiodun elaborated that the issues surrounding menstrual hygiene was depriving a lot of girls and women from educational opportunities especially unwarranted taboos and myths, and she will do all within her power to raise more public awareness, as well as work in hand with the Ogun state government to eradicate/lessen the tax on pads so it will be more affordable for the people of Ogun state. She donated sewing machines to each school present to empower the students practice and learn how to make reusable pads.

A reusable pad workshop/empowerment session themed “social mobility for woman” followed shortly. The event was concluded by distributing menstrual/sanitary kits (Hygiene packs) to both students and guests in order to promote menstrual hygiene and healthcare awareness. Covid19 safety protocols were observed during the event.

ABOUT GIRS WITH PERIOD INITIATIVE

Access to safe and dignified menstruation is a fundamental yet trivial need for women and girls especially in rural areas, prisons and among the disabled. GWP initiative has been able to support over 10,000 women and girls across Africa since establishment by providing and distributing sanitary and menstrual kits and educating them about menstrual healthcare and hygiene, sex education, importance of education and self-esteem amongst others, with hopes of completely eradicating period poverty in Africa. To support GWP initiative contact us at +2347065694161 or info@girlswithperiod.org.