Jesutofunmi Fayemi

A Non-Governmental Organisation, JTF Foundation, has announced the dates for its 2-day menstrual Health and hygiene event.

Founder of JTF, Jesutofunmi Fayemi made the announcement in a statement on Monday.

She said that the programme is geared towards “creating awareness about mnstrual health and hygiene, educating the teenage girls and their mothers on its importance, and providing sanitary pads to the teenage girls.”

“The event is scheduled to hold on the 12th and 13th of August, 2020 at Alhaja Anike Street, Off Ekoro Road, Abule Egba, Lagos.

“There will be a rally on the first day of the event, to create awareness about the programme and to sensitize the mothers of the girls on the need to regularly educate their daughters about menstruation.

“On day 2 of the event, there will be a 2-hour educative programme with the girls starting by 12pm which includes seminar, question and answer session and a short quiz.

“Menstrual health and hygiene are aspects of women health that has been side lined by many including educational and health sectors. It is a part of the woman and also occurs in young girls of the reproductive age.

“Before the onset of the pandemic, several studies have shown the poor knowledge, attitude and practice of menstruation and its management among young females and women of reproductive age in Nigeria.

“The onset of the pandemic has worsened the situation and due to the inability to afford or access proper menstrual products, many girls and women rely on crude, improvised materials like scraps of old clothing, pieces of foam mattress, toilet paper, leaves, and banana fibres to manage their menstruation – all of which are unhygienic, ineffective, and uncomfortable thereby putting them at risk of urogenital, yeast, fungal, urinary tract infections and cervical cancer.

“These conditions also increase the vulnerability of young girls to the coronavirus infection as it affects their immune system.

“In attendance will be an health expert to educate the teenagers on Menstrual health and hygiene,” the statement read.