Charlotte’s Memorial Foundation, a non-governmental organization, has donated 120 reusable sanitary pads, as well as clothing, stationery items, and shoes, to Wokumagbe District Assembly Basic School in Ada East District. The foundation was invited to the school by Mr. Emmanuel Sene, a teacher at the school.
The donation was made to mark this year’s World Menstrual Hygiene Day and to highlight the importance of good menstrual hygiene practices for women and girls worldwide.
Charlotte’s Memorial Foundation (CMF) carried out the donation in collaboration with Amazing Girls Foundation, which produces the sanitary pads and educates girls on their proper use, and the Fafali Organization, which contributed educational materials and school bags to support the students.
Speaking after the ceremony, Mrs. Beatrice Pratt-Fosu, founder of CMF stated that she discovered that many girls, especially those in rural areas, miss many school during their menstrual periods.
After conducting research into the reasons for this trend, it was discovered that this is due to several factors, including poverty, lack of decent washroom facilities, potable water, and the inability to afford menstrual and sanitary products.
Mrs. Pratt-Fosu, stated in an interview that they regularly visit schools and interact with the girls to fully understand their needs, enabling the foundation to raise funds and provide a sufficient supply of sanitary pads to them periodically.
She said, “When we organize sanitary pad donations, we also provide teaching and learning materials, clothing, shoes, and sometimes food as all these resources go hand-in-hand.”
This initiative, she revealed, is part of an ongoing project dubbed the Dignity Pack Project, through which the foundation aims to supply sanitary pads to rural schoolgirls, acknowledging that menstruation is not temporary but a cycle which lasts for decades in a woman’s lifetime.
She added that although the focus of the sanitary pad project is on girls, the foundation also includes items for the school boys during their donation drives and has been successful in sustaining this drive for the past six years.
The foundation’s research also found that many girls in rural areas use washable cloth or cotton during their periods. As a result, they partnered with Amazing Girls Foundation, which produces reusable sanitary pads that can last for up to four years.
The Assistant Headmaster of the school, Mr. Prince Amenyo, also said that the menstrual cycle sometimes affects the girls in school, especially those in rural areas whose parents are within the poverty cycle.
He expressed gratitude to the Charlotte Memorial Foundation for their generous gesture of donating sanitary pads to the girls in his school.
Mrs. Pratt-Fosu noted that World Menstrual Hygiene Day, observed every year on May 28th, is a global awareness day dedicated to all menstruating girls and women and should be recognized accordingly.
Present at the donation event were Honourable Kobina Fosu, former MP for Asikuma/Odoben/Brakwa District; Mrs. Beatrice Efua-Fosu, Founder of Charlotte’s Memorial Foundation; Mr. William Koblah Mensah, Field Manager; Mr. Ephraim Atandzi, Field Officer; and Ms. Valeria Kinikonen, a Member of Amazing Girls Foundation.
By Francis Quasie
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