A radio drama series on menstrual health and hygiene titled “My Period, My Pride” will debut on Thursday, August 31.
Award-winning broadcaster, Anike-Ade Funke Treasure, the convener of the Sanitary Pad Media Campaign (SPMC) and executive producer of the series, said in a press statement on Wednesday signed by the campaign’s spokesperson, Bolanle Oluwayemi, that the initiative is an advocacy tool to demand free sanitary pads for school girls from the Nigerian governments across all levels.
“The drama series mirrors the challenges of the girl child as she struggles with education in the face of period poverty. It is a distillation of conversations and stories about menstruation as experienced by many families,” she said.
“Drama is presently not prominent in the menu of many radio stations in Nigeria, so this is both content and advocacy. We are therefore particularly grateful to the McArthur Foundation Africa office in Nigeria, under the leadership of Dr. Kole Shettima for supporting our work in the menstrual hygiene sector and giving impetus to our media campaign.”
According to the senior programme officer for Africa at McArthur Foundation Amina Salihu, “Period poverty is an equity, human rights and socio economic problem. Society and the state loose because we are not able to understand the socio economic dimensions.” She stated further that period poverty is a form of gender-based violence and until policy makers recognise it as such we wont be able to shift the needle in terms of the right kind of policies and laws.”
Veteran broadcaster Ogie Eboigbe said, “With radio you can be sure to reach more people, because even the mobile phones all have FM radios while drivers and owners of cars as well as passengers are sure to hear and get the message.”
Funke Treasure particularly asserted that the “drama series is coming at a time Nigerian citizens are grappling with the effects of subsidy removal on family budgets and household needs.”
READ ALSO:
Funke Treasure kicks-off My Period Stories podcast series
Funke Treasure launches grammar books
Renowned agro-economy expert and former vice-chancellor, Afe Babalola University, Prof. Sidi Osho, who chairs the board of Illuminate Nigeria Development Network (INDN) under which the SPMC runs, stated that the series would emphasise for the girl child many important issues that they should know about, especially, their physiology as females.
Osho said it would bring to bear the importance of hygiene in menstruation, emphasise the knowledge about evolution of eggs during menstruation to reduce the number of out of school children that get pregnant.”
She said further that, “It will showcase the role that caregivers and mothers play in explaining more about sex education to their wards especially for social growth. We hope that the series would stimulate policy makers, private sector, and industries to support this vision, by giving sanitary towels to girls through this campaign.”
The 13-week drama series captures the first menstruation, menstrual cramps, anxiety over continued education due to period poverty, menstrual hygiene talk, the effects of corporate and government intervention on schooling through donation of menstrual items to school girls, the empowerment of women, child abuse and exploitation, the significance of scholarship to indigent students.
Season one of the drama series, sub titled ‘Efe’ would air on seven radio stations in five states and the FCT.
The radio stations on the project, which starts with Bond FM 92.9FM Lagos on Thursday, August 31 at 12.15pm are Invicta 98.9FM, Kaduna, Darling 107.3FM Owerri, Hit 95.9FM Calabar, Splash 105.5FM Ibadan, Radio Now 95.3FM Lagos and Human Rights Radio 101.1FM Abuja.
The SPMC has three other expressions designed to advocate for a policy action by federal and state governments in Nigeria on period poverty among under-served populations. These include a pad scholarship for school aged girls which now has more than 2,000 girls in twelve states of Nigeria namely Lagos, Kano, Oyo, Kaduna, Ogun, Kwara and Benue States. Others include Delta, Ondo, Nassarawa, Bauchi, and Taraba. The scholarship provides menstrual pads, underwears, beverage, soap and sanitisers to the girls monthly, as incentives to remain in school.
Other expressions include an essay competition for girls, an audio and video podcast, and two petitions on change.org.
