In many parts of the world it is a common experience for girls to miss school for up to six days per month during menstruation because of poor sanitation and hygiene, stigmatisation and infection.In 2018, Rotary Central Melbourne member Mawien Ariik saw an opportunity to identify vital community needs in his home village of Lou Ariik and founded South Sudanese Health Matters Inc. These needs included basic healthcare, education, clean water and sanitation, and access to improved women’s hygiene.
The South Sudan Menstrual Hygiene and Education project was established and recently helped 800 schoolgirls through the distribution of re-usable menstrual hygiene kits (sourced from Days For Girls Uganda). By distributing the kits along with menstrual hygiene education the project is empowering girls, addressing the stigma and traditional cultural mores of menstruation in a sensitive way, and helping to reduce infection rates.
Congratulations to Mawien Arrik and Rotary Central Melbourne for bringing lasting change to the lives of these girls by connecting project partners including Rotarians, The Rotary Foundation, volunteers from South Sudanese Health Matters; The Chagai Foundation and the village Chieftains.
Together we connect, we are #peopleofaction