–declares no girl should miss school because of her period

THE Office of the First Lady, in collaboration with the Ministry of Education, on Friday launched the novel Menstrual Hygiene Initiative at the Anna Regina Multilateral Secondary School (ARMS).

The launch of the initiative in the Cinderella County is intended to see every menstruating school-aged girl in Region Two (Pomeroon-Supenaam) receiving a full quota of sanitary pads, free of cost, for a whole year.

According to First Lady Arya, too many girls the world over are missing school due to their monthly cycle. She said that through the initiative, girls need no longer feel ashamed of engaging in conversation on such a topic, and will be able to have sanitary products within their reach whenever they are needed.

She said that she herself, along with the Minister of Education, will be travelling across the country to each of its ten administrative regions to distribute sanitary pads to school-aged girls. She told the gathering of both females and males that the initiative was made possible through approved fundraising events hosted by her office to ensure that female hygiene is adequately taken care of.

She said that when she took office, she learnt of the dilemma that a number of females are facing when that time of month comes around, and as such was compelled to launch the initiative.

Globally, she said, over 800 million girls continue to miss school due to their monthly cycle. The First Lady is, therefore, hoping that no girl in Guyana will miss school ever again because of her menses.

“You girls are our future nurses and doctors, policemen, lawyers, and teachers; you are the future leaders, and at no point in your life should you be forced to choose between having an education,” Mrs. Ali said, as she reminded the gathering that menstruation is a natural biological function, as it’s a change that all females will experience during the course of their lives.

As such, she is urging females not to be ashamed of the topic, and to start engaging in conversation about it. She also encouraged parents, guardians and teachers to be involved in educating young about their menstrual health.

Minister of Education Priya Manickchand said that her ministry is happy to a partner with in a project that is wholly funded by the Office of the First Lady.

She said that according to the statistics at hand, at least 26% of the females in the school system here cannot afford to purchase the sanitary products they need to take care of their personal hygiene when that time of month comes around, and are often forced to use one pad longer than the prescribed hours. The minister also used the opportunity to urge females to talk more about their menstrual cycle; to break the silence around the subject so to speak.

Regional Chairperson Vilma De Silva also weighed in on the subject, and lauded the Office of the First Lady for choosing Region Two to launch the initiative. She, too, said that for too long, women have been ashamed of the topic, and that no other women’s group had ever opted to make the change.

She, therefore, urged females to make use of the products that are provided to them. Also in attendance at the launch was Regional Education Officer, Ms. Nicola Matthews and ARMS Headmaster, Mr. Lalljeet Rooplall.