The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has trained 330 girls from 93 schools in Borno, Adamawa and Yobe states on Menstrual Hygiene Management (MHM).
The Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) Manager, UNICEF Maiduguri Field Office, Ms Mamita Thakkar, made this known on Thursday in Maiduguri during a media parley to commemorate the 2024 Menstrual Hygiene Day.
Thakkar said that 158 teachers in the affected schools were also trained on MHM to support adolescent girls in the schools.
“We also created adolescent groups to provide psychological support.”
According to Thakkar, 321 women in various communities were also trained on MHM and how to make reusable pad and soap.
The WASH manager stressed the need for a holistic approach in addressing MHM pointing out that good menstrual hygiene remains crucial for the health, education and dignity of girls and women.
“To help girls and women manage their menstruation needs, UNICEF supports building knowledge and skills amongst girls and women.
“In collaboration with the Government in northeast Nigeria, local partners and donors such as the German Development Bank (BMZ) and the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO), UNICEF provides training support to school girls to produce reusable pads.
“We are also ensuring adequate water supply in schools and communities and promoting the construction of gender segregated toilets in schools and communities, so that girls and women are provided with safe spaces to manage menstruation with dignity and safety,” Thakkar said.
