In Uganda, sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) remain a critical human rights issue, especially for the young people. Yet, one vital aspect is still too often ignored: menstrual health.
Menstruation is a natural part of life and a fundamental component of reproductive health. But due to stigma, misinformation, poverty, and inadequate infrastructure, menstruation is treated as a taboo topic, causing significant harm to girls and young women across the country.
The lack of proper support means many girls are unfairly forced to miss school, suffer health issues, and struggle with low self-esteem. It’s deeply concerning that so many young people are left without the resources they need to take care of themselves with dignity and confidence.
Menstrual health is a crucial part of the broader sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) conversation. This article brings attention to the real challenges faced by young people in Uganda, while also calling on policymakers, parents, and cultural and religious leaders to play an active role.
There is an urgent need for stronger support and action to improve menstrual health across the country.
The silent crisis
In Uganda, one in four girls between the ages of 12 and 18, drop out of school after getting their first period. This isn’t just about a lack of sanitary products, it’s about a system that fails to support girls both at home and in school.
Around 60% miss school during menstruation due to lack of access to sanitary products, clean toilets, or safe, private spaces, and fear of stigma.
This puts girls at risk of infections, damages their self-esteem, and denies them an equal chance at education.
These statistics are not just numbers; they’re a call to recognize menstrual health as a serious public health and human rights issue.
This is not just a hygiene issue, it’s a barrier to education, equality, and opportunity to realise their full potential.
Cultural and religious beliefs often reinforce shame around menstruation. Some communities restrict menstruating girls from cooking, attending religious services, or participating in social life.
Many see periods as something shameful or not clean, and this leads to girls facing limits in what they can do every day (Akullu, 2022).
For example, some groups have rules that stop girls who are in their period from cooking, going to religious events, or taking part in social activities, which makes them feel left out and alone (Plan International, 2022).
Families and cultural groups often keep these rules going. Because of this, people do not talk freely about periods, and girls do not get the support or information they need.
This isolates girls, lowers self-esteem, and reinforces harmful gender norms.
Economic inequality continues to fuel period poverty, making it nearly impossible for many girls to afford basic menstrual products. As a result, they are forced to use unsafe alternatives like rags or even bags filled with soil, putting their health at serious risk, as it was reported in one of the local newspapers in 2024.
According to UNESCO, one in ten girls in Sub-Saharan Africa, including Uganda, misses school during their period, losing up to 13 days of learning each term (CEHURD, 2024).
The problem is made worse by the lack of clean water, private toilets, and proper facilities for disposing of pads in schools.
With over half of Uganda’s schools lacking functional toilets or running water, managing periods becomes not just difficult but nearly impossible (UNFPA ESARO, 2024). This failure in infrastructure and access forces nearly a third of menstruating girls to miss school, an injustice that continues to widen the education gap and reinforce gender inequality.
Misinformation
Majority of the Ugandan teen girls face serious challenges managing their periods with dignity, mainly because of widespread misinformation.
Without accurate knowledge, many feel fear, shame, or adopt harmful habits. Shockingly, a 2022 study by Plan International Uganda found only 48% of girls had correct information before their first period (Plan International, 2022).
Science-based understanding of menstruation is often lacking. Most girls learn from peers or mothers, who may unknowingly spread myths due to limited education (Akullu, 2022). Fathers rarely engage in menstrual health discussions, with their daughters, wrongly viewing it as a “women’s issue,” which leaves families unsupportive (Plan International, 2025). Religious and cultural groups shape community norms, yet they usually fail to promote solid SRHR education, missing critical chances to challenge stigma (CEHURD, 2018).
Uganda has made efforts, like the 2015 MHM Charter and 2019 National Guidelines, but implementation remains weak. Funding is low, and political will is clearly lacking, reflected in the minimal 2024/25 budget allocation for youth SRHR programs.
The 2016–2021 NRM manifesto promised menstrual hygiene supplies for schools, and the new Sexuality Education Framework supports including MHM in lessons and urges schools to work with cultural and religious leaders, but action continues to lag (CEHURD, 2018).
For years, civil society groups have led the charge, breaking stigma and empowering people, especially girls, to manage their periods with dignity. Initiatives like those supported by UNICEF and KOICA, which fund school health clubs that teach girls to make their own reusable pads, are not just practical, they’re transformative. They reduce the economic burden on families and give girls more control over their health.
But it’s not just NGOs doing this work. Religious and cultural institutions, once overlooked in conversations about sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR), are now proving to be powerful allies.
Programs like the Nabagereka’s Kisakaate and Pastor Jessica Kayanja’s Girl Power Conference are successfully creating safe, culturally relevant spaces to talk about menstrual health. Religious media outlets also have the potential to be effective messengers, but they remain underutilized.
Young people, especially girls, must be at the forefront of this movement. School clubs and peer education programs are not just nice-to-haves, they’re essential.
Leaders like Sonia from Togo show how young people can dismantle shame and drive real change. And boys must be included in these conversations, too. Ignoring them only reinforces gender stereotypes. If we want a future of true gender equality, menstrual health must be everybody’s issue.
Finally, good intentions from policymakers are not enough, we need follow-through. Commitments to provide free sanitary pads in schools and to improve WASH facilities must be fully implemented.
The Ministry of Education should expand the Sexuality Education Framework to include comprehensive, age-appropriate menstrual health education for all students, regardless of gender. Policies must also tackle economic inequality head-on by funding local production of affordable, reusable pads.
Everyone has a role
Parents, especially mothers, play a crucial role in educating girls about menstruation, but fathers must also step up. In Nepal, Plan International showed how involving fathers can transform family conversations around sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR).
It’s clear: if we want to dismantle harmful myths and shame, parents must be honest, open, and provide accurate information. They need to support their daughters not just emotionally but also by ensuring access to menstrual products and safe, private spaces.
Religious and cultural leaders have a responsibility to use their influence for good by promoting fact-based SRHR education.
Integrating menstrual health management (MHM) into youth programs like Sunday schools and cultural camps can normalize periods and erase stigma. When faith-based groups collaborate with organizations like Reproductive Health Uganda to distribute dignity kits and lead discussions, their impact becomes far greater.
The reality is that solving period poverty and menstrual stigma requires collective action. Civil society organizations, NGOs, young people, parents, community leaders, and faith groups must unite.
Only by breaking taboos, increasing open dialogue, and ensuring access to menstrual supplies can Uganda build a truly period-friendly world. In this world, girls and women won’t be held back by period poverty or shame.
It’s imperative that everyone stands together, trusts evidence, and champions the rights of young people, especially girls and women. Menstrual health is not a privilege; it is a fundamental right for all.
We must recognize that menstrual health is not just a women’s issue, it is a matter of public health, education, and human rights. A period should never be the reason a girl misses school, feels shame, or suffers in silence.
By speaking up, sharing facts, and supporting inclusive solutions, Uganda can lead the way in building a period-friendly world, one where every girl has the tools and respect she needs to thrive.
The Writer is Frank Byaruhanga, Human rights and communications practitioner
Email: byaruhangafrank123@gmail.com
