Educating women and girls is vital for the world to achieve higher levels of economic growth and development. As the former UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon said, “The world will never realize 100 percent of its goals if 50 percent of its people cannot realize their full potential. When we unleash the power of women, we can secure the future for all.” Prioritization of women and girls amplifies their voices in society and gives them a seat at the table in leadership, entrepreneurship, and creating change. Over the years, there have been significant efforts toward achieving gender equality in education; however, millions of young girls still fail or struggle to enroll as well as complete school. According to the U.N, in developing countries, 87 percent of girls enroll in primary school, but only 39 percent finish lower secondary. Globally, it is estimated that over 62 million girls are not in school, with a gender disparity in education indicating that 78 percent of girls are dropping out of school compared to 48 percent of boys. The stigma attached to menstruation and poor menstrual hygiene are factors that have largely contributed to school girls’ class absenteeism and dropout. The topic of menstruation in some cultures is still considered a “taboo”, as well as menstruating girls, are considered “contaminated,” “dirty,” and “impure.” In Uganda, nearly a quarter of young girls between the ages of 12 – 18 drop out of school when they start menstruating. A study on Menstrual Management in Uganda by The Netherlands Development Organization (SNV) and IRC International Water and Sanitation Centre showed that per term, a girl pupil might miss up to 8 days of study. In a year having 220 learning days on average, missing 24 learning days translates into 11 percent of the time that the girl pupil misses due to menstrual periods.
This emulates that the stigma attached to menstruation or the inability to afford period products stops girls from going to school, putting them more at risk of entering child marriages, experiencing early pregnancies, pregnancy complications, malnourishment, domestic violence, and, therefore, limiting the extent and ways in which they can participate in the public sphere.

 Through our RUMPs for Rural Girls’ Program, Dwona Initiative is creating menstrual hygiene management clubs at their partner schools called Dwona period clubs. Dwona Initiative is currently working with schools from Nwoya District, Wakiso District, Mityana District, Mukono district, Kayunga district, Hoima District, and Kampala city.