The Girls to Women Foundation, G2WF, has called on the government of Ghana to take out the current 20 percent import tax on disposable sanitary pads in the country.
Presently in Ghana, disposable sanitary pads are classified as luxury goods and therefore attract an import tax of 20% and a value-added tax of 12.5%.
Observing the 2022 Menstrual Hygiene Day at Kasulyili in the Tolon district of the northern region, Executive Director of Girls to Women Foundation, Hajia Mariam Iddrisu, said the cost of sanitary pads sometimes compel girls to share the same reusable pads with their sisters and mothers, a practice she bemoan leads to the spread of Sexual Transmitter Infections.
“… Government should consider waving the luxury tax on sanitary products so as to make it affordable for our girls and young women to buy during their menstrual period. The current cost of sanitary pads sometimes compel girls to share the same reusable pads with their mothers and sisters; an unavoidable practice that lead to the spread of STDs/STIs among our young women” she emphasized.
Hajia Mariam Iddrisu further urged the media to frequently educate the public on menstrual hygiene and care not only on the recognize days like 28th May as set aside annually, emphasizing there is no day on earth when no women goes through her menstrual period.
In addition, the former Sagnarigu Municipal Chief Executive has suggested that, moving forward, government and its developmental partners, should ensure a changing room for students is part of the ancillary facilities of every school infrastructure design in the country.
She added the absence of this important facility in the school infrastructure makes things very difficult for female students when the need arises for them to tidy up during their menstrual period while teaching and learning is in session.
Meanwhile, the Girls to Woman Foundation during the celebration distributed sanitary pads to the Kasulyili basic school students and the Tolon Senior High School.
The Executive Director said the gesture was made possible due to the benevolence of some individuals and organizations through a social media campaign prior to celebration.
She further commended all those who supported in diverse ways to make the exercise a successful one and also thanked officials of the Ghana Health Service who were present to educate the teenagers on menstrual hygiene and care.
Some of the teenagers could not hide their excitement and lauded the Girls to Women Foundation for the donation and also called for more of such initiatives.
The 2022 Menstrual Hygiene Day was observed under the theme: “Making menstruation a normal fact of life by 2030”.
The day is observed every year to highlight the importance of good Menstrual Hygiene Management (MHM) at a global level.
