Innovations in Addressing Menstrual Poverty in Africa: The Menstrual Cup Intervention for Girls in Rural Ghana

Abstract

Background: Period poverty does not receive the needed attention and poses a major threat to the development of women and girls especially in developing countries. The well-known problem of accessibility and affordability of menstrual products likely suggests that women and girls go through a lot in going about their normal duties whenever they menstruate. They either half-heartedly attend to daily routines and other relevant activities or forgo them entirely because of the physical discomfort, psychological distress and feelings of low self-esteem (Mason et al., 2019) due to stigmatization and difficult access to menstrual absorbents. In 2021, a study funded by Plan International in the Wa East district of Ghana found 83% of rural girls who had no access to menstrual products and transacted sex for pads due to the problem of accessibility and affordability. CouldYou? a US based non-profit responded to this developmental challenge as the organizations role in addressing Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 1,3,4, 5, and 17. CouldYou? collaborated with Ghana Girl Guides Association, and Plan International supported non-profits - Necessary Aid Alliance and Upper West Youth Parliament. The menstrual cup intervention reached 2,000 girls in the Wa East District. With this backdrop, this current study offers more insights into how the menstrual cup has become an innovative solution to fighting period poverty in rural Ghana. Methods: The menstrual cup intervention in Ghana covered the period November 2022 to July 2023 on a sample size of 385 girls who received the CouldYou? menstrual cup. Participants were