Prioritising menstrual hygiene

To mark the Menstrual Hygiene Day, girls at Gaibandha char area are demanding access to safe sanitary pads. It raises our curiosity while our government has been continuing subsidies and tax incentives on sanitary pads since 2019. Five years back while the global movement on tampon tax was a popular protest movement and the government responded by cutting taxes on period products. It happened in Bangladesh as well. Taking advantage of tax incentives, our major brands invested a lot to grab the market of 35 million menstruating women and girls. Our corporates kept on flooding the market with unhealthy plastic pads.

We hardly care about women’s health and environmental standards. Unhealthy period products have emerged as a huge health hazard in addition to creating environmental pollution. “While low-cost reusable biodegradable pads are being made by hundreds of SMEs across the country”, says Salina Akter of the Ella Pad. “They are hardly getting the attention of the policymakers”.

Demonstrators, with the banner of Ella Alliance, also demanded correct information about the period products. They were asking for ‘menstrual equity’. It is interesting to note that they are not considering plastic-based traditional pads are safe for their bodies. Girls growing up in the natural environment of Bharmaputra Char are unfamiliar with all-pervasive plastic in their daily lives like those of city dwellers. They don’t want to pollute their beautiful land, which they use for their livelihood, with plastic items. Their responsiveness to society is encouraging, indeed.

Experts raised concerns about pushing plastic products and limiting the choice of the customers. “It is a woman’s basic right to choose which product they will use,” said Dr Nurullah, health advisor, at Water Aid. “To manage their hygiene, women have to have a choice to use products that they prefer and products which are available and affordable.” Appreciating the innovative initiative at Gaibandha, Dr Md Rafikuzzan, Health and Family Planning Officer, Fulchari Upazila, mentioned the Ella Pad was really addressing women’s problems in managing their menstrual hygiene.

The story of Gaibandha should act as an eye-opener for our national policymakers. Where are we going? Are we taking the right decisions in addressing period poverty? There are many messages for our policymakers. Being in a conservative society, female demonstrators on the street are not common. In fact, they were breaking the taboo of menstrual hygiene and pointing their fingers at the piling up of plastic waste which is destroying our ecosystems. Like the last three years, our finance minister, in the budget again proposed to provide tax incentives on sanitary napkins.

It’s time to address ‘menstrual equity’ in addition to ensuring mere ‘period poverty’. We need to talk beyond menstrual products. We need to discuss who is getting access and what women are getting in the name of period products actually. Experts agree unanimously that plastic pads are not healthy. Numerous health hazards are associated with plastic pads in addition to environmental consequences. Even cloth pads are also under question if materials are not selected properly.

Do we need imported materials to address our period poverty? The matter needs to be considered seriously. Experts emphasize cloth-based pads as good for women’s health and environment. It looks like certain quarters are keen on capturing the sanitary pad market and creating another problem of environmental pollution. The whole country is covered by plastic pads piling up in cities and villages. Instead of ‘polluting first and clean later’, let’s start now and focus on biodegradable and reusable pads.

The writer is School Programme Coordinator, Ella Pad