Kamuli, Uganda: The Ministry of Education and Sports has urged headteachers in Busoga region to establish emergency sanitary pad facilities for school-going girls to curb absenteeism linked to menstrual challenges.
The call was made by Mr. Birungi Musa, Senior Education Officer in the Basic Education Department, while addressing learners and headteachers from seven districts during the IRC WASH Project Symposium held at Kamuli Township Primary School in Kamuli Municipality on Monday.
Mr. Birungi emphasized that menstrual hygiene remains one of the major barriers to girls’ consistent school attendance, stressing the need for schools to provide sanitary towels and other essential items to support adolescent girls.
“We need to ensure that we support our adolescent girls during menstruation,” Birungi said. “I want to appeal to all headteachers to provide emergency sanitary materials and other items to ensure that our girls are supported and kept in school.”
He further encouraged teachers to enhance school health parades as platforms for sharing accurate information about menstrual hygiene management and overall health.
“Teachers, we need to strengthen health parades at school so we can pass all the messages about menstrual hygiene to our girls,” he added.
Birungi also called upon school stakeholders to regularly inspect girl changing facilities and promote the implementation of WASH (Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene) projects to ensure a healthy learning environment.
Speaking at the same event, Mr. Ssentongo Badru, Deputy Chief Administrative Officer (CAO) of Kamuli, commended IRC WASH and its partners for championing hygiene and sanitation initiatives among learners.
“I would like to thank IRC WASH for supporting hygiene and sanitation in schools and the community — it is helping our young girls stay in school,” Ssentongo noted.
Ms. Bridget Nantege from the Ministry of Water and Sanitation also urged communities to join efforts in ending early marriage and keeping girls in classrooms. “I want to implore you all to change the narrative of early marriage in Busoga by keeping our girls in school. Together, we can do it,” she said.
The IRC WASH Project seeks to promote good sanitation, hygiene practices, and environmental conservation in schools across the region.
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