In November 2010, WaterAid, with support from the research consortium SHARE, brought together 16 practitioners and researchers with expertise in water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH), health, equity and inclusion, education and gender to share knowledge and experiences and develop a research programme for menstrual hygiene management (MHM).
Published on: 17/03/2011
In November 2010, WaterAid, with support from the research consortium SHARE, brought together 16 practitioners and researchers with expertise in water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH), health, equity and inclusion, education and gender to share knowledge and experiences and develop a research programme for menstrual hygiene management (MHM).
The roundtable was convened to bring together a multi-disciplinary group of experts on menstrual hygiene management in order to:
The overall spirit and sentiments of the roundtable can be summarised by the following statement: “Menstrual hygiene management is fundamental to the dignity of women and girls and an integral part of basic sanitation and hygiene services for which every woman and girl has a right. Menstrual hygiene management needs to be seen also within the overall equity and inclusion paradigm as a neglected issue. It cuts across other vulnerabilities such as disability, location, poverty, class, caste and religion according to the context.”
Menstrual hygiene management is complex and needs to be addressed holistically and in context as a package of services that includes voice and space to talk about the issue, adequate water, privacy, facilities for washing and disposal, and, most importantly, increased awareness amongst men, women, boys and girls.
To download the briefing note issued after the roundtable please visit www.wsscc.org . For more information contact archana.patkar@wsscc.org.
