In Liberia, Menstrual Hygiene Day Brings Hope and Practical Solutions to Young Women

At King Gray Public School in Monrovia's ELWA, district six, teenage girls gathered on May 28, 2025, to share stories that many had never being spoken out loudly. 

Their voices, at times hesitant but growing stronger, described the shame, missed school days, and makeshift solutions that have defined their experiences with menstruation.

The gathering was part of Liberia's observance of World Menstrual Hygiene Day, a global awareness campaign that this year highlighted a stark reality: an estimated 500 million women and girls worldwide lack access to menstrual products and adequate facilities for menstrual hygiene management.

The statistics reveal the scope of what advocates call "period poverty." Globally, over 800 million women are menstruating on any given day, yet access to basic sanitary products remains elusive for millions. 

Period poverty refers to the inability to afford and access menstrual products, sanitation and hygiene facilities, and education and awareness to manage menstrual health. Simply put, period poverty costs women and girls too much, and it doesn’t have to be this way. In sub-Saharan Africa, the challenges are particularly acute, with only 1 in 8 schools providing menstrual products to students.

The consequences extend far beyond physical discomfort. Research shows that roughly 1 in 10 girls in Africa miss school because of their periods each year, creating educational gaps that can compound over time. In neighboring countries, the impact is quantifiable: girls in the Gambia skip school for five days every month due to a lack of access to menstrual products, missing out on a month and a half of learning annually.

Image credit: CHI

Against this backdrop, Liberian organizations launched multiple initiatives on May 28, 2025, combining immediate relief with long-term advocacy. The Amplifying Rights Network distributed menstrual pads at King Gray Public School while encouraging students to share their experiences publicly—a significant step in a society where menstruation is often shrouded in silence.

"Their voices were a powerful reminder of the difference informed choices can make," organizers noted, describing how female students took the stage to discuss menstrual health education.

The day's activities extended beyond Monrovia. At Invincible Sports Park, the Ministry of Gender's Adolescent Girls Division partnered with community groups to demonstrate the creation of reusable menstrual pads. Girls from the Beyond Incarceration Program led workshops on sustainable alternatives to commercial products, addressing both accessibility and environmental concerns.

Miss Liberia, Veralyn Vonleh, joined the nationwide effort by visiting Kpor Town Public School in Margibi County. Her initiative, the Red Bloom Initiative, distributed copies of a book titled "How I Felt When I First Saw My Period," along with sanitary pads, soap, and food supplies.

"Her body is not her burden—it is her strength," Vonleh told students, emphasizing a message that directly counters prevailing cultural attitudes about menstruation.

The coordinated efforts reflect this year's global theme: "Together for a Period-Friendly World." Yet, the activities also served as advocacy for concrete policy changes. Organizations used the platform to push for the passage of Liberia's revised public health bill, which aims to ensure affordable sanitary pads are accessible to all women and girls in the country.

The policy dimension is crucial, advocates argue, because individual charity efforts cannot address the systemic nature of period poverty. Across Africa, the problem is compounded by taxation of menstrual products, limited school facilities, and cultural taboos that prevent open discussion of reproductive health.

Global health organizations emphasized that menstrual hygiene management requires more than product distribution. Millions of women and girls worldwide cannot access water and sanitation facilities to manage their menstrual health and hygiene, making comprehensive infrastructure development essential.

The World Health Organization's latest data underscores the educational infrastructure gap. In sub-Saharan Africa, only 1 in 10 schools have adequate menstrual hygiene facilities, creating environments where students cannot manage their periods with dignity during school hours.

For participants in Liberia's Menstrual Hygiene Day activities, the statistics translate into personal experiences of adaptation and resilience. The reusable pad workshops, in particular, represent both practical skill-building and economic empowerment, offering alternatives when commercial products are unaffordable or unavailable.

Community health initiatives emphasized that sustainable solutions require addressing multiple barriers simultaneously: affordability, accessibility, education, and cultural stigma. CHI
the prime mandate is to strengthen and promote healthcare, social services, women’s rights, and child rights, especially girls
including persons living with disability and sexual minorities in Liberia.The day's events in Liberia demonstrated how advocacy organizations are tackling each element through coordinated programming that combines immediate assistance with long-term systemic change.

As the global movement gains momentum—MH Day 2024 reached 966 million people worldwide—Liberian advocates see their work as part of a broader transformation. The goal extends beyond ensuring access to menstrual products to creating societies where menstruation is understood as a normal biological process requiring appropriate support systems.

The stories shared by students at King Gray Public School reflected both the challenges that remain and the hope that organized advocacy can create change. For many participants, May 28 represented the first time they had discussed menstruation in a public, supportive environment—a small but significant step toward the period-friendly world that advocates envision.

Blessing Rictricia Karim of the organization Empower Her InitiativeLiberia, emphasized the broader significance of the day's activities. "Let's normalize period, empower education, and champion dignity for every girl and woman," she said. "Let's celebrate progress and commit to a future where no girl misses school, no woman faces shame, and every period is met with pride, not prejudice. Menstrual Hygiene Day isn't just about awareness—it's about justice. Let's fight until every person can menstruate with safety, dignity, and without shame."

Similarly; Christina F. Blama-Hessou, Sexual Reproductive Health and Rights (SRHR) Coach said Menstrual hygiene remains a deeply overlooked aspect of public health, especially in underserved communities where access to sanitary products, education, and supportive environments is limited. 

"The challenge is not just the lack of resources, but the silence and stigma that continue to surround menstruation. To bridge this gap, we must prioritize education, normalize menstrual conversations in schools from as low as 3rd grade, in church, mosque, and the communities. Hessou said, "Policies should be put into place to ensure that pads are available on campus for school-going kids; there should be access to clean bathrooms and clean water on campus to maintain hygiene and a girl's dignity during her menses.

She stressed the need to invest in sustainable solutions like reusable pads and build a world where no one is held back by their period.