The Menstrual Health Project in Sri Lanka by Global Hand Charity and Emflower in 2024
GOALS:
1. To educate school aged pre-pubescent girls on menstrual hygiene.
2. To promote the use of period underwear for health and for the betterment of the environment.
3. To reduce the amount of menstrual waste going to landfill.
4. To establish relationships in Sri Lanka that can carry on this education sustainably to meet UN Sustainability Guidelines.
5. To establish a supply chain of these products in Sri Lanka that can create employment for displaced workers in Sri Lanka.
PROJECT VOLUNTEERS:
1. Jessica Ross – Founder of Emflower menstrual underwear and Committee member of GHC.
2. Makayla Billi – Post Grad Psych student and member of GHC
3. Mark Horwood – GHC
PROJECT OUTCOMES (to date):
Close to 1000 girls and women influencers listened to the presentation from Jessica and Makayla translated by teachers. The Women’s Centre and Rotary Club of Badulla and the Rotary Inner Wheel of Colombo have both committed to continuing the project. Both have brochures, printed or digital, some samples with which to continue the work of educating young girls on menstrual hygiene and the benefits to the environment of using these re-usable period products.
We met with Edith Cowan University’s Board of Directors who want to work with us to help connect us to manufacturers, to assist in the obtaining Standards Certification and to provide menstrual hygiene education to girls and women through their Nursing Students Prac.
Through Pubudu De Zoya, the District Governor of Rotary International District 2330, we were able to arrange a meeting with the Government Director of Family Health – Dr Chithramalie de Silva. That meeting attended by the Director herself and three senior aids proved most exciting, as they shared their enthusiasm and support of our reusable panties. The Directors advised us to seek Standards Certification so this product could be purchased by the Government and distributed freely to girls in Sri Lankan schools as part of their own Menstrual Health initiative.
