Madam Faustina Obeng, Sekyere East Girl Child Coordinator of the Ghana education Service (GES), has called on teenage girls not to use their monthly menstrual periods as an excuse to stay out of school.
She said girls should not see menstruation as a sin but rather, see it as a natural phenomenon and go about their normal duties during that period.
What is important, she said, was for them to use appropriate sanitary pads and manage their menstruation safely and in a hygienic manner.
Madam Obeng, was speaking at a community durbar held at Bomso in the Sekyere East District to commemorate the global menstrual hygiene day.
The event was organized by Optimal Change Partnership (OCP) to highlight the need for community members to support adolescent girls, both in school and rural communities during their menstrual cycle.
The occasion was also used to distribute free menstrual sanitary pads to the young girls present at the durbar.
Mrs Victoria Afriyie Quarcoo, District Public Health Nurse, urged girls to always wash their hands properly with soap after handling their menstrual pads and dispose the pads in safe and hygienic manner.
Mr Cyril Adajawah, Operations Manager of OCP, urged the girls to seek proper guidance and counselling from their parents, teachers and other respectable persons in their communities when they encountered difficulties during their menstrual periods.
He said the durbar was to create awareness among community members to support their girls to manage and handle their menstrual cycles properly and in safe and hygienic manner.