Tzar Oluigbo (Lead writer)
In August 2025, Nigeria made history. For the first time, menstrual health was formally recognised as a national development priority, with the validation of the National Policy on Menstrual Health and Hygiene Management (MHHM), led by the Minister for Women Affairs, Imaan Sulaiman-Ibrahim.
For years, confusion, silence, and stigma have been a common experience for many Nigerian girls during their first period. Instead of receiving the right information and support from parents or guardians, they are often left to navigate shame, misinformation and period poverty, which excludes them from education, social life, and daily activities.
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) estimates that one in ten girls in sub-Saharan Africa misses school during menstruation. Over the course of a year, this amounts to nearly 30% of school days lost, solely due to menstrual poverty. Even when sanitary products are available at home, the absence of adequate sanitation and hygiene facilities in schools often forces many girls to simply stay away from school.
The consequences are profound. When millions of adolescent girls fall behind academically, the ripple effects are lifelong, with reduced earnings, limited career prospects, and perpetuating intergenerational cycles of poverty. According to a World Bank analysis, closing gender gaps in education could increase Nigeria’s GDP by 23%, equivalent to approximately $229 billion by 2025.
In 2020, sanitary pads and tampons were exempted from value-added tax, through a Finance Bill signed by then-President Muhammadu Buhari. This was an important acknowledgement that menstruation is not a luxury and should not be taxed. While the measure offered some financial relief, the reality remains unchanged for many, millions of families still cannot afford these products.
For girls in low-income households or displaced communities, commercial pads are often out of reach, either unaffordable or unavailable. As a result, many are forced to rely on cloth, tissue paper, or other improvised materials that not only cause discomfort and leaks, but can also increase the risk of infections.
What the policy promises
For decades, the absence of a coherent policy left millions of women and girls navigating menstruation without adequate products, facilities or support. If finalised and implemented, this policy could be more than a bureaucratic milestone; it has the potential to recognise that tackling period poverty is fundamental to achieving gender equity, education, and national productivity. Period poverty is not an isolated issue, it cuts across broader health and development challenges that shape the future of women and communities.
The draft policy proposes tax exemptions for Nigerian-owned companies producing organic and reusable sanitary pads, with the aim of improving affordability and access. It also advocates for the integration of menstrual health education into the primary and secondary school curricula, promoting awareness and sustainable practices from an early age.
As Minister Imaan Sulaiman-Ibrahim affirmed, “by 2030, no girl in Nigeria should have to choose between her education and her menstruation.”
The hard work ahead
Policy adoption is only the first step. Nigeria’s history is marked by well-intentioned policies that often faltered at the stage of implementation. To prevent this, once the policy is finalised, several actions are critical:
- State ownership: With education largely a state responsibility, governors and commissioners must adopt and fund the policy within their jurisdictions.
- Sustainable financing: One-off donations will not suffice. Long-term budget lines are needed to provide pads, build toilets, and maintain supply chains.
- Community mobilisation: Traditional and faith leaders must actively dismantle the myths and stigma that still surround menstruation.
- Capacity building: Teachers, health workers, and peer educators need the skills and know-how to provide accurate information and support.
- Accountability systems: We must measure impact, track school attendance, product distribution, and shifts in knowledge and attitudes.
Without these steps, the policy risks becoming another well-intentioned document gathering dust.
A moment to seize.
The ongoing development of the MHHM policy is a landmark achievement, but history will not judge Nigeria by the policies it passes; it will judge by the lives those policies change.
Every day a girl misses school because of period poverty is an opportunity lost. Nigeria has set the vision. The question now is whether it has the political will, financial commitment, and societal courage to make it a reality.
Kenya offers a useful example on the continent. Having adopted a Menstrual Hygiene Management Policy for 2019 to 2030 that commits to integrating menstrual health into education, health, and WASH systems. The policy not only recognises menstrual health as a rights and development issue but also provides a framework for resource allocation and accountability.
With strong political will and grassroots implementation, Nigeria too could transform lives, ensuring that by 2030, period poverty is no longer a reason to miss school, skip work, or suffer in silence.