The Executive Director of Africa Education Watch (Eduwatch), Kofi Asare, has indicated that the government’s Free Sanitary Pad Initiative is beginning to show positive impact in schools, particularly in improving girls’ retention and easing pressure on teachers.

Speaking on The Point of View on Wednesday, April 15, Kofi Asare shared findings from monitoring conducted by his organisation across selected districts.

According to him, the government has procured and distributed millions of sanitary pads to support female students.

“Key issues are that yes we’ve seen that the government procured about 12 million sanitary pads and distributed them to schools. In the 10 districts we tracked, in excess of 300,000 has been received, about 340,000 or so has been received which is about an average of 35,000 or so per district,” he said.

He explained that at the school level, distribution to students varied, but the availability of the products has been beneficial.

“At the school level we realised that distribution range between three and nine and it was good that the pads were available for schools for girls to use,” he noted.

Kofi Asare added that early signs point to a positive impact of the initiative, especially in keeping girls in school and reducing challenges faced by teachers.

“Impact yes, girls’ retention had improved, burdens on teachers lifted,” he stated.

The Free Sanitary Pad Initiative forms part of broader efforts to support girls’ education and reduce barriers to school attendance.