Education Minister Haruna Iddrisu has lauded the government’s newly launched National Free Sanitary Pads initiative as a “terminal end” to the silent suffering many schoolgirls endure during menstruation.
Addressing a spirited crowd at the Salvation Army Cluster of Schools in Mamprobi, Accra, during the official launch of the policy, Mr. Iddrisu emphasized the social and emotional toll menstruation has historically taken on girls, especially those in basic and secondary schools who often lack access to sanitary products.
“Today’s milestone in my words is to say a terminal end to the unbearable emotional trauma and indignity that young girls go through responding to nature,” he said, drawing attention to the often-overlooked struggles female students face when they cannot afford proper sanitary protection.
With President John Dramani Mahama present at the event, Mr. Iddrisu did not mince words about the significance of the moment. He attributed the policy’s success to the former president’s commitment to the well-being of Ghanaian girls, especially their ability to attend school without interruptions.
“Excellency John Dramani Mahama says from today, you will give a terminal end to that strife and to that struggle so that no girl child in Ghana will abstain herself from school, have her dignity compromised as we watched in the drama because of undergoing this natural biological process,” he remarked.
The initiative, which seeks to distribute sanitary pads for free to girls in public basic and secondary schools, aims to curb absenteeism among adolescent girls and promote menstrual hygiene across the country.
