Madam Rita Yaaloonaa Bayor, a philanthropist, has advised school girls to stay in school during their menstrual periods in order not to lag behind in teaching and learning.
She explained that some girls, especially at the rural level, stayed out of school during their menstrual period for fear of the stigma and mockery from their colleagues in the school when they soiled themselves with the blood.
Madam Bayor gave the advice when she donated some sanitary pads to school girls at the All Saints Junior High School, Konzokala Junior High School and the Issa R/C Junior High School in the Daffiama-Bussie-Issa (DBI) District, Upper West Region last Wednesday.
She also educated the girls on how to wear the pads to protect themselves to enable them stay in school during their menstrual period.
The philanthropist sensitized the girls on menstrual hygiene and stressed the need for parents to meet the basic need of their girl children by providing them with sanitary pads to enable them stay in school throughout.
She explained that menstruation forms part of the development features of every woman, but that it should not be a barrier to the education of the girl child.
Madam Bayor entreated the boys to support their colleague girls to study rather than mocking them when they soil themselves.
She acknowledged the financial challenges that hinder some rural girls from accessing sanitary pads hence her intervention to support those girls saying, “I know this cannot serve you forever but it will help you for the mean time”.
The Philanthropist, who is also the Gender Desk Officer at the DBI District Education Directorate, noted that the need for a sanitary pad could lead the girl into teenage pregnancy as she would use every available means to access it, and urged parents to show much interest in providing them for their girl children.
Madam Bayor earlier extended such education to the Saint Augustine’s Junior High School at Daffiama in the DBI District as well as distributed the sanitary pads to the girls.
Reverend Father Paul Gaa, the Headteacher of the All Saints JHS at Issa, commended the philanthropist for the kind gesture and said it will help bring a relief to the girls who are in dire need of the materials.
According to him the education will also enlighten the girls who, hitherto, were naïve about menstrual hygiene.