THE INTERGRATION OF MENSTRUAL HEALTH (MH) INTO SEXUAL AND REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH AND RIGHTS (SRHR)
There is a clear human rights imperative to integrate Menstrual Health (MH) into Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights (SRHR): when the human rights, including sexual and reproductive rights of girls and women who menstruate are met, they are more likely to experience menstruation and SRH in a safe, healthy and dignified manner. Also, people’s experience with menstruation either facilitates or impedes a broad range of human rights. Menstrual Hygiene is also increasingly recognized as critical for the attainment of several Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
HUMAN RIGHTS IMPERATIVE
Sexual and reproductive rights are a constellation of civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights recognized in existing national laws, international human rights instruments and other consensus documents related to the sexual and reproductive Health and life of individuals and couples, they assert that all individuals have the right to decide over their bodies, to attain the highest possible standard of Sexual and Reproductive Health (SRH), and to be free from violence and discrimination, menstruation is fundamental to the fulfillment of these rights. Menstrual experiences affect both physical and social determinants of Sexual and Reproductive Health (SRH), when rights of girls and women who menstruate are met, they are more likely to experience menstruation and SRH in a healthy, safe and dignified manner.
MENSTRUAL STIGMA, GENDER EQUALITY AND SRHR
Although menstruation is a natural process, experiences of menstruation in many places around Uganda and in Mityana District are underpinned by gender inequality, stigma, and discriminatory social norms in some settings, menstrual stigma manifests as restrictions on bathing, handling food, swimming, participating in religious gatherings, eating certain foods, or sleeping in the same household as non-menstruating family members, discrimination in schools and workplaces, where girls and women and are unable to manage their menstruation safely, with dignity and privacy. It should be noted that all forms of menstrual-related discrimination are violations of human rights as such, dismantling menstrual stigma and transforming harmful social and cultural norms is pivotal for the achievement of Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights and gender equality.
COVID-19 THREATENS THE RIGHTS AND HEALTH OF PEOPLE WHO MENSTRUATE.
Gender inequality, extreme poverty and harmful traditions can all turn menstruation into a time of deprivation and stigma. These vulnerabilities are only increasing under the pandemic, as access to sexual and reproductive health services and information are decreasing.
LINKAGES BETWEEN SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS (SDGs) AND MENSTRUAL HEALTH AND HYGIENE.
MHH is important for the fulfilment of girls’ and women’s rights, a key objective of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Women and girls’ access to MHH is a component of gender-responsive WASH services; SDG 6.2 acknowledges the right to menstrual health and hygiene, with the explicit aim to, “By 2030, achieve access to adequate and equitable sanitation and hygiene for all and end open defecation, paying special attention to the needs of women and girls and those in vulnerable situations”. Without considering needs for safe and dignified menstruation, the world cannot achieve the vision for sanitation and hygiene under Goal 6.
Women and girls’ access to MHH is also central to achieving other SDGs. The lack of basic knowledge about puberty and menstruation may contribute to early and unwanted pregnancy; the stress and shame associated with menstruation can negatively affect mental health; and unhygienic sanitation products may make girls susceptible to reproductive tract infections – all affecting SDG health outcomes (Goal 3).