Who We Are / Our Vision /
Our Approach To MHH

 

Menstruation poses far-reaching challenges. Period poverty - being unable to afford menstrual health and hygiene products of choice, and in many cases any products, coupled with the financial burden posed by menstrual supplies has a profoundly negative impact on the lives and freedoms of millions. 

We believe that true equality depends on the ability of women and girls to manage their menstruation safely because when they have power over their own bodies we all benefit. With adequate means to take care of their periods, women and girls are better enabled to realize their sexual and reproductive health, complete their education, and access and retain jobs. Improved menstrual health and hygiene (MHH) is therefore critical to unlock opportunities. 

Menstrual products also have a detrimental impact on the environment, ranging from the impact of production methods including associated CO2 emissions to the volume of single-use waste and plastics in disposable products that end up in the environment, landfills and  sewage debris. Furthermore, emerging evidence suggests that climate factors affect menstrual product use and uptake, suspend menstrual health initiatives, exacerbate water challenges with negative menstrual health outcomes, and that more sustainable menstrual health interventions could be implemented in climate emergency settings.

We are using our expertise and financing to attract resources to develop thriving menstrual hygiene marketplaces. We promote knowledge and awareness and work with countries to build markets and accompanying standards, systems and data to provide women and girls with access to a choice of menstrual hygiene materials, and a private place to change, wash or dispose of materials, and clean their hands and bodies, with long-term economic, social and environmental returns.

The main elements of our approach are: 
  1.  A focus on assisting the process of developing thriving menstrual hygiene marketplaces. 
  2.  A commitment to move periods from economic burden to opportunity, unleashing and capitalizing the economic power of women and securing their voice and place in the value chain to improve outcomes for themselves and  business.
  3.  Identifying the root causes of market shortcomings and build a stronger ecosystem through market-shaping actions along the menstrual hygiene product supply chain.
  4.  Contributing equally to the strengthening of the sanitation economy - an ecosystem that menstruators depend upon for their sanitation and hygiene access. 
  5.  Deploying technical assistance to help remove the barriers to enterprise growth, identifying investable propositions  before using our grant funds to unlock financing.

Read: 'POWER IN HER HANDS: Menstrual Equity for All'

Our-Approach-MHH-Feb2024

 (Photo credit: WSSCC)