7 News Belize

The Punto Final On A Woman’s Period
posted (December 11, 2018)
Period: we aren't talking about the punctuation mark, we are talking about Aunt Flo, Crimson Tide, The Big Red - Yup, that time of the month. It is not a topic openly spoken about especially around men but UNICEF along with it's partners want to bring everyone into the discussion thorough the first ever Menstrual Hygiene Management Initiative. The coordinating team conducted a year-long survey at various schools to find out how girls are dealing with their periods and also to see if boys are also learning about the cycle. It was an interesting study and the results show that there is need for more education and awareness among adolescents and increased access to basic sanitary products for girls such as pads and tampons. Here is more from the launch.

Paulette Wade, Monitor/Eval. Specialist, UNICEF
"Today, we are launching the first ever menstrual hygiene management study. Last year, around this time, we embarked on a survey in schools; twenty schools across Belize. Ten rural and ten urban, looking at how well girls manage their menstruation and what is there to support them in terms of this. And so, we did this through a qualitative approach; so, we did focus groups with girls, we did focus groups with their parents, we did focus groups with boys. We did in depth interviews with girls, in depth interviews with teachers and administration. We did school observations, the bathroom facilities and wash facilities and we did observations in all the stores that are within one block of the schools. We did it that way because we realize that menstrual hygiene management is a holistic approach. It's not just the provision of pads, but it's also to ensure that the pads are affordable. It's how you treat the pain, it's as well how you dispel the myths, how... you know, well, you're not supposed to eat anything citrus because it will increase the pain; which is a myth. How do you allow girls to be able to manage this menstruation, this monthly occurrence with dignity, free of discomfort and free of fear?"

Courtney Weatherburne, reporter
"So, based on the results, what are they showing? Are young girls able to afford pads, do they have access to the information that they need to go through these periods?"

Paulette Wade
"Well, it's inconsistent across the board in terms of knowledge. In some localities, the girls are more informed than in others. There is still a great taboo associated with menstrual hygiene. And so, even some teachers are uncomfortable teaching the subject. In fact, we had some boys; when we interviewed them, they said "Ms. we know whenever they're discussing menstrual hygiene because we are asked to leave the class". And I think that it shouldn't be; it should be a holistic education for both boys and girls. Because even though boys do not experience the phenomenon, we are hoping that as they grow, they become husbands and they become fathers, and so, they have to understand what it entails in order to better support their wives and their daughters."

"The more rural you go, the less likely it is that you will find pads. In fact, we have had some communities in which it is not in the stores any at all and so, the girls do not have access to be able to even purchase the pads."

Courtney Weatherburne
"What do they do in that situation?"

Paulette Wade:
"I am assuming that they would use cloth. Some indicated that that's what they use; some parents will indicate it, 'cause the girls wont, that that is what they give their girls, and they use cloth. They also would use maybe toilet paper or cotton. Some people have actually used the diaper, but cut them. So, those are the things that parents have indicated that they have used to support their children. Now, we know that there is an actual cost to menstrual hygiene management and many times, you know, you cannot rightly go and afford a five change pad at that moment, because we understand the economic situations of some families. And so, how do we verse upon the various powers to ensure that this is made affordable to girls?"

The survey focused on girls and boys between the ages of 10 and 14. As it relates to access to pads, Wade suggested that the schools could provide pads free of cost to girls. But that is just one suggestion, Wade says for it to be successful it has to be through a multi-sectoral approach.

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