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TACKLING PERIOD POVERTY IN PRISONS
Date: 17-11-2022
Youth and Women Advocacy Network is a movement of young people in Meru County that aims to mentor, support and increase the capacity of young advocates to influence youth policies and resource priorities in the areas of gender equality and sexual reproductive health and rights at the grass root and county level with a special focus on girls and young women. The organization is both women and youth led with a membership of 40 youths, with 28 being women drawn from low-income areas in Meru County. It is registered as a community-based organization (CBO) under the social services whose engagements is on volunteer basis. The organization was formed in 2018 whose vision is to achieve an inclusive society that identifies and exercise its Rights. The mission of the organization is to promote equity, equality and empowerment for all people without discrimination through Advocacy and capacity building of the people. The organization was part of the cohort one under WVL (Women Voices and Leadership) Project running a project named ‘Msichana Imarika’ that means empowering of the girl child. The organization targets adolescent girls in school, out of schools, girls from slum areas and young women of vulnerable groups to be part of development in a bid to achieve gender equality. The activities target areas where incidences of gender-based violence occur due to retrogressive cultural practices where the man is allowed to violate the woman as a sign of love, incidences of insecurity and misuse of power from people in power.
The organization also conducts advocacy and awareness creation activities at the grass root level that seeks to empower young girls and women in governance and leadership through the eradication of gender-based violence, teenage pregnancies, FGM, rising cases of HIV and mental illness and this time round they targeted women in prison as one of the special group of women who need quality information and services on their reproductive health.
All around the world women are being held back in life and even put in danger, simply because of their period. Period poverty has negative impacts towards education, health and emotional wellbeing of many lives not just girls and women, but society as a whole. Period poverty is a global issue where 1 in 10 girls can’t afford to buy menstrual products, with many missing school and work as a result. But period poverty isn’t just about affordability. Many women and girls in prison don’t have access to hygienic facilities, or are unable to manage their periods with dignity often due to stigma or superstitious or religious dogma around menstruation. The organization is conducting awareness creation activities with women and girls in prison targeting on providing information around sexual reproductive health.