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Creating a Dialogue for Upgrading and Providing Facilities for Menstrual

Hygiene Management in Schools

• Problem analysis

Most of the schools in Plan working areas are lack of facilities for menstrual hygiene

management. Availability of sanitary pads, changing pads, washing and disposing,

facilities for changing and washing, disposal of used sanitary pads are challenging

for girls. Appropriate technology for disposal is not recommended and practiced by

schools and these remain as an environmental problem as well.

Adult girls were advised by female teachers to bring used pads home for disposal.

Girls in rural schools practice this as their homes are close by and they do not

attend private classes and after schools without going home. They rapped used

napkins well and put them in their bags until they go home. But if the child come

far from the school and stay after school and attend private classes and go home

late this becomes an issue. Menstrual management is an issue for school girls in

urban setup where travelling take considerable amount of time and girls attend in

private classes. They may use one pad during the whole day which can be smelly

and over wet.

Problem analysis by children

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• Awareness and advocacy

Menstrual hygiene management of adult girl children was taken as a special topic

for discussions during relevant stakeholder meetings at school, project, zonal and

provincial levels. The appropriate and specific system for menstrual hygiene

management was developed in schools with the consultation of teacher in charge of

school health club, some female teachers and girl student’s of school health club.

Public Health Midwifes and teachers were involved in awareness creation about the

menstrual hygiene to adult girls and their parents and facilities for menstrual

hygiene management within the schools were visited by parents in Uva PU. School

girls and boys, more importantly parents were made more aware and sensitive about

the menstruation and menstrual hygiene through Public Health Midwife or Medical

officer of Health. Transact walks within the school premises with adult girls, female

teachers and mothers before and after providing facilities for menstrual hygiene

management.

Making parents, male and female teachers and principles sensitive about issue of

girls during their menstruation is expected before providing facilities. Then girls are

made aware on how to use the facility properly.

Transact walks with girls and parents to visit MHM facilities in schools

Consultations with girl children

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Separate consultation sessions were conducted with girl’s children’s groups at

different stages of the project cycle. System for menstrual hygiene management was

designed with adult girl children. Consultation sessions with disaggregated groups

of children contributed to embed age-appropriate and gender-sensitive features in

to menstrual hygiene management infrastructure.

Certain modifications for the designs such as height of latrine, place of fan lights,

mirrors, soap, sanitary napkins, height and size of urinals, direction of doors, lockable

doors to prevent stray dogs, cows, cats and goats coming in, size of toilet cubicles

were included after consultations with children. Surrounding of latrines and

hand/foot washing stations were made attractive by planting trees, grasses and

preparing flower beds and wall paintings with health messages.

Consultations with girl children

• Providing facilities

Schools were provided with menstrual hygiene facilities for adult girls. Special

disposal unit for used sanitary napkins were attached to special latrine unit of the

girls latrine (primary and secondary). That special unit of the latrine has more space,

light condition and ventilation. The unit was attached to the girl’s toilet, to avoid

other students to see it. Capacity of the dry pit was designed based on the number

of adult students. This initiative was very much appreciated by principals, teachers

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and students. 7 Dry pits for sanitary napkin disposal were constructed in 21 schools

as a pilot project.

Some schools have arranged system to sell sanitary pads through the health

clubs/home science/sick rooms/school canteens. Cost recovery mechanism was

developed through money collection from adult girl children and selling the sanitary

napkins. Separate wash rooms with disposal and washing facilities sometimes with

bathing facilities were constructed. One school suggested producing sanitary pads

with low cost materials. Girl and boy students in primary and secondary sections,

principals and male and female teachers were consulted separately as groups during

the project design period and basic designs of water and sanitation infrastructure

were shared with them.

Outside view of dry pit Inside

view of dry pit

Gender sensitive facilities in latrines

Separate latrine areas and latrine blocks for girls and boys (toilets and urinals) were

constructed close to the class rooms and each toilet included hand washing basin,

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water tap for foot washing and other necessary accessories such as the mirror, soap,

soap holder, brush, water buckets, cleaning materials detergents, sometimes toilet

papers and towels. A wall was placed in front of latrine doors to prevent viewing

and they were positioned in opposite direction of the class rooms. Female and male

latrines blocks were located close to the latrines of female and male teachers

accordingly. Boy’s urinals in the same latrine block were separated for privacy.

Child friendly toilet

Safe disposal of Sanitary Napkins

Dry pit method was practiced as a pilot without any issue from 3 years up to now.

But degrading of used sanitary napkins can be a slow process and sometime it may

fill up to the top if capacity of the pit is limited. One school planned to burn those

partially degraded material once the pit is filled during the school vacation. Some

schools have added ashes and lime into the dry pit time to time. Proper and safe

disposal of remaining in dry pits and disposal methods for used sanitary napkins

remain as a areas for further development.

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