Menstruation is a normal biological process. Yet for millions of women and girls, managing menstruation safely and with dignity remains a challenge shaped by poverty, limited access to appropriate menstrual products, inadequate water and sanitation facilities, stigma and gaps in health information.
In Nigeria, these challenges extend well beyond personal hygiene. They affect health, education, participation in public life and gender equality. This makes menstrual health not simply a private matter, but an important public health and development issue.
Period poverty is more than the absence of sanitary pads
Period poverty is often understood as the inability to afford menstrual products. But the challenge is considerably broader.
The 2025 article From period poverty to policy change: advancing menstrual health as a public health priority in Nigeria describes period poverty as involving inadequate access to menstrual products, safe sanitation and reliable health information. It identifies economic barriers, stigma, inadequate infrastructure and gender inequality as interconnected factors affecting menstrual health in Nigeria.
A girl may have a sanitary pad but no private toilet in which to change it. Another may have access to water but lack accurate information about menstruation. A woman may be able to purchase a menstrual product, but the available product may not provide sufficient absorbency, appropriate fit or adequate protection from leakage.
Effective menstrual health management therefore requires several conditions to work together: safe products, clean water, appropriate sanitation, privacy, accurate information and an environment free from stigma.
Menstrual health and education are closely connected
The consequences can be particularly significant for adolescent girls.
The research article reports that menstrual product affordability, fear of staining clothing and fear of ridicule can contribute to school absenteeism among girls in Nigeria. It also highlights evidence from low-income communities where some girls and women have resorted to improvised menstrual materials when commercial products were inaccessible.
Missing school for several days every month can accumulate into a significant educational disadvantage.
But keeping girls in school requires more than distributing pads.
Schools need private and functioning toilets, reliable water supplies, appropriate disposal facilities and menstrual health education. Teachers also need the information and resources required to provide supportive learning environments.
And boys should be included in age-appropriate menstrual health education. Reducing stigma is a community responsibility, not an obligation that should fall only on girls.
Product quality is part of menstrual health
Access must also mean access to safe and suitable products.
The UN technical specification for disposable sanitary pads describes a sanitary pad as a layered product comprising a body-contact top layer, a transfer layer, an absorbent core, a leak-proof bottom layer and adhesive that keeps the pad securely positioned during use.
These requirements address practical aspects of menstrual management that are sometimes overlooked.
A menstrual product should absorb menstrual fluid effectively. It should remain securely positioned. It should not disintegrate during the recommended period of use. And it should not cause unnecessary irritation.
The specification states that sanitary pads should be safe for skin contact, free from foreign matter and unpleasant odour, and sufficiently absorbent for the intended menstrual flow. It also specifies that products should be unscented and capable of being worn for four to six hours under the defined product requirements.
Quality therefore matters as much as availability.
Menstrual health is connected to sustainable development
Improving menstrual health can contribute to progress across several areas of development.
The Nigerian policy commentary links menstrual health to six Sustainable Development Goals: poverty reduction, good health and well-being, quality education, gender equality, clean water and sanitation, and reduced inequalities.
These connections are practical.
When girls can manage menstruation safely at school, education becomes more inclusive. When women can access suitable products at affordable prices, economic barriers are reduced. When communities have safe water and sanitation, menstrual hygiene becomes easier to manage. And when menstruation can be discussed without shame, girls are better able to seek information and support.
Moving from individual responsibility to shared responsibility
Menstrual health should not depend solely on the ability of an individual girl or woman to purchase a product every month.
Government institutions, schools, health facilities, manufacturers, communities, civil society organizations and development partners all have roles to play.
Nigeria has already taken some steps. The research article notes that locally manufactured sanitary pads received a VAT exemption under the 2020 Finance Act. It also documents a growing number of menstrual health programmes implemented by civil society organizations, humanitarian agencies and private-sector partners. However, the article concludes that initiatives remain fragmented and calls for a coordinated national framework integrating health, education, WASH and social protection.
The next phase must therefore focus on systems.
Affordable menstrual products are important. But so are appropriate product standards, functioning school toilets, reliable water, informed communities, menstrual health education and sustainable public financing.
Every girl and woman should be able to menstruate safely, privately and with dignity.
That should be understood not as a privilege, but as a basic condition for health, participation and equality.