After the devastating earthquake in Nepal, survivors were in dire need of many survival and hygienic items, including feminine hygiene products. Days for Girls International responded to this need by providing washable menstrual hygiene kits to Bode Resettlement Camp in Bhaktapur, Nepal.
For years, Celeste Mergens, a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and founder of the Days for Girls organization, has been searching for a way to reverse the cycle of poverty. After many prayers, Mergens realized that providing feminine hygiene products for women and girls in developing countries could help in the fight against poverty as it allows women and girls to continue to work or attend school even while menstruating, which allows them to learn valuable skills and help provide for their families.
Prior to receiving the washable products, the Bode Resettlement Camp had received disposable pads from many different organizations wanting to help, but instead caused a bigger problem for the community. In a press release, Days for Girls International explained that the camp became littered with soiled disposable products, despite having a bin available to dispose the products in.
“There are so many plights of humanity that are hard to change,” said Mergens. “Menstrual hygiene is not one of them.”
Mergens and her team provided 4,000 washable hygiene kits, each lasting up to three years. In addition to providing a more long-term solution to this issue, Days for Girls also conducted a training for 30 Nepali women and two men, educating them on reproductive health, menstruation, self-defense and how to properly care for the hygiene kits. Those who received the training are now teaching others.
Newly trained health ambassador, Hari Maya Gurung, will continue spreading the valuable information she learned throughout Nepal. She said,
This is my heart. I will do all I can to lift women and girls.
Local Nepali Latter-day Saints, including Bishnu Adhikari who was featured in Meet the Mormons, helped with the initiative.
Days for Girls has previously provided feminine hygiene kits for other countries, including Ethiopia, and plans to provide similar aid and trainings in the future as they plan to travel to Mozambique, Ghana and Nigeria.
