Build the Agency of 150 Adolescent Girls and Women

Menstrual hygiene management can be particularly challenging for girls and women in developing countries, where clean water and toilet facilities are often inadequate. In addition, traditional cultures make it difficult to discuss menstruation openly. This limits women's and adolescent girls’ access to relevant and important information about the normal functions of their bodies. This directly affects their health, education, and dignity. Access to information can be considered a human right.

Currently, there are about 3.73 billion women in the world. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), 52%, or 1.9 billion, of those women are of reproductive age, thus menstruating (WHO, 2018). Women at some point in their lives will go through the reproductive age and therefore, will experience menstruation. It has been estimated that daily 300 million women are menstruating; on average a woman will spend about 3,500 days during her life menstruating.

In Nigeria, an estimated 37 million women and girls experience period poverty, meaning that they are unable to access or afford menstrual products like pads and tampons, but also pain medication and underwear. It's a situation that remains largely unaddressed within society, even as the escalating cost of sanitary pads over the past five years has worsened the problem, putting an essential product out of reach for a large portion of the population.

In addition to the material difficulties caused by period poverty, there is also a stigma attached to menstruation, particularly in more conservative parts of Nigeria. That stigma reinscribes social inequalities. "Period poverty and gender inequality intersect.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Menstrual_hygiene_management

https://www.gavi.org/vaccineswork/nigerian-activists-take-period-poverty

However, in Ikom and Boki Local Government of Cross River State, Nigeria, we trained 10 adolescent girls and young women who are peer mentors in their communities. The 10 Peer mentors significantly impact 336 adolescent girls and young women (AGYW) through targeted peer sessions to enhance their knowledge of menstrual hygiene management (MHM). The mentors then address common myths and misconceptions about menstruation and encourage the adolescents to ask questions and seek guidance always from a trusted adult. These Peer Mentors advocate for change, fostering an environment where accurate and quality information about menstrual hygiene is accessible to adolescents and young women.

 The Peer Mentors educate and empower adolescent girls to become advocates within their circles. They encourage the girls to share what they've learned with friends and family, fostering a ripple effect of knowledge and awareness throughout the community.

 In the words of the girls:

“Participating in the peer sessions on menstrual hygiene has transformed me. I learned how to care for myself properly when I am on my monthly period and I realised I wasn't alone in my struggles. This knowledge has given me confidence and a sense of belonging’’  Lena 21 years

"Attending the peer session on menstrual hygiene was eye-opening. It educated me about proper care and helped me understand that many others shared my experiences. This newfound awareness has made me more confident and less ashamed, allowing me to embrace my womanhood with pride."  Lydia 16 years

Female genital mutilation (FGM) remains widespread in Nigeria. With an estimated 19.9 million survivors, Nigeria accounts for the third-highest number of women and girls who have undergone FGM worldwide. While the national prevalence of FGM among women in Nigeria aged 15-49 dropped from 25 percent in 2013 to 20 percent in 2018, prevalence among girls aged 0-14 increased from 16.9 percent to 19.2 percent in the same period, according to NDHS figures. An estimated 86 percent of females were cut before the age of 5, while 8 percent were cut between ages 5 and 14. 68 million girls worldwide were estimated to be at risk of female genital mutilation between 2015 and 2030. As COVID-19 continues to close schools and disrupt programs that help protect girls from this harmful practice, an additional 2 million additional cases of FGM may occur over the next decade.

https://www.unicef.org/nigeria/press-releases/unicef-warns-fgm-rise-among-young-nigerian-girls

Every day, harmful practices like FGM are depriving millions of girls in Nigeria of their childhoods, health, education, and goals. The practice of FGM has no health benefit at all; instead, it is harmful to girls and women and affects them negatively. FGM has serious implications for the physical, psychological, sexual, and reproductive health of girls and women. However, this practice should be abandoned in our societies.

To build communities that are secure for girls and women, ultimately free from FGM, in November 2023, EVA has intensified its initiatives in Imo and Ebonyi states. The capacity of 48 peer mobilizers in schools was built on ending FGM in the two states. The 48 girls, 25 from Ebonyi and 23 from Imo state, were trained with life skills, Comprehensive Sexuality Education, Gender-Based Violence and Female Genital Mutilation to serve as school ‘End FGM champions’. The girl champions,under the supervision of their teachers who also participated in the training, established school clubs/safe spaces where they reached 1,283 adolescent girls and young women with information on ending FGM, addressing GBV and life skills. The 48 girls collected  and documented twenty five stories of FGM survivors and provided them with psychosocial support in the process. The girl champions are currently holding safe spaces to discuss the health issues and other challenges associated with FGM on girls and work towards its eradication with the target of reaching eight thousand additional adolescent girls in one year.

Some of the stories are collected for survivors.

It was a horrible day in my life that I will not forget. The pain, the healing process, the inconveniences, and the trauma. I will never allow any of my female children to be circumcised in my life as long as I am alive and a mother in the future. Pauline 12

 A few years after my birth, my clitoris was cut off by my elder sister, who was a midwife, and she always travelled from one state to another to perform FGM on other females, both old and young. Luckily for me, I didn't bleed much, but I suffered serious pain while growing up. After secondary school, I got pregnant. A few months later, I gave birth to a baby girl. After I saw my baby girl, I held her in my arms and promised myself that none of my female children would be circumcised for any reason. Lola 13.