Menstrual Hygiene Day 2025: Building a period-friendly world for every woman and girl

As the world marks Menstrual Hygiene Day 2025 under the theme, “Together for a #PeriodFriendly­World,” WaterAid Tanzania is high­lighting the importance of safe, inclu­sive, and dignified menstrual health for all women and girls.

A period-friendly world is not just a vision—it’s a practical goal grounded in access to clean water, decent toilets with private spaces, and right informa­tion.

From schools to healthcare facilities and public markets, WaterAid Tanzania is working to break the silence, improve access, and ensure that menstruation is no longer a barrier to education, work, or participation in the community.

WaterAid Tanzania Country Direc­tor Anna Mzinga responds to key ques­tions about menstrual hygiene, the role of clean water and functional/decent toilets, and how their interventions are creating lasting change—one commu­nity at a time in a one-on-one session with the Citizen Reporter. Excerpts…

Question: This year’s Menstrual Hygiene Day theme is Together for a #PeriodFriendlyWorld. What does a #PeriodFriendlyWorld look like to WaterAid Tanzania?

Answer: A #PeriodFriendlyWorld is one where every woman and girl can manage her period with safety, dignity, and hygienically boosting their confi­dence without missing out on school, work, or public life. Here at WaterAid Tanzania, this simply means women and girls can access essential peri­od-friendly resources including clean water, decent and gender-sensitive toi­lets and the right information about menstrual health.

When women and girls miss out on work or school because of their peri­od, they lose the chance to learn, to earn, and to lead change. At Wate­rAid Tanzania, we work to ensure that schools, health facilities, and public spac­es have the right essentials: clean water, decent toilets, and hand­washing facilities, private spaces for managing men­struation, and access to correct and supportive information all of which are sustain­able.

When public infrastructure sup­ports menstrual health, girls can attend school regularly and women can par­ticipate in work and public life with dignity. I believe it is very important for achieving gender equality and inclusive development in our country.

Why do you think water plays a criti­cal role when talking about menstrual hygiene?

Water is fundamental for menstrual hygiene. Because of water, women and girls can wash their hands, clean their bodies, and feel fresh and comfortable during menstruation.

Without access to clean water, man­aging menstruation becomes unsafe, uncomfortable, and undignified. In schools, workplaces, markets, and healthcare facilities, reliable water sup­ply is the foundation of a supportive, period-friendly environment.

Why do you think a decent toilet makes a woman or a girl show up and thrive when talking about menstrual hygiene?

Decent toilets that are safe, clean, private and accessible enable girls and women to manage their periods with­out fear or shame. When we have fully functional toilets with water and dis­posal provisions, we offer dignity and protection.

Girls are more likely to attend and stay in school, and women can remain active at work or in public life. It’s a sim­ple but powerful step toward gender equality and participation.

Could you tell us more about WaterAid+ Tanzania’s interventions particularly those related to menstrual health in schools, and healthcare setting?

At WaterAid Tanzania, we ensure that schools and healthcare facilities are equipped with clean water, decent toilets, and hygiene services. In schools, we’ve supported the construction of gender-separated toilets with hand­washing stations and private spaces for menstrual hygiene.

In healthcare facilities, our work ensures that female staff, patients, and caregivers have the facilities they need to manage menstru­ation safely. These interventions direct­ly improve attend­ance, comfort, and dignity especially for adolescent girls and women.

Can you tell us more about MHM for girls in school and what is/how are SWASH clubs helping to change this?

Menstrual Health Manage­ment (MHM) in schools plays a critical role in keeping girls in class, boosting their performance and con­fidence. SWASH clubs are School Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene groups that promote good hygiene, raise awareness about menstruation, and provide peer support.

These clubs help break silence, nor­malize conversations about menstrual health, and ensure that school envi­ronments meet girls’ needs and the boys as well. Where SWASH clubs are active, we’ve seen improved confidence among girls and more consistent school attendance during menstruation as well as better hygienic behaviours.

What challenges do communities face when it comes to menstrual hygiene, especially for the women in public places? How do you think WaterAid is addressing them?

Many public places such as markets, bus stations, and community centres lack clean water and functional toilets. This makes it difficult for women to manage their periods while working or engaging in daily activities, that pushes them to stay home or use unsafe alternatives.

WaterAid has recently handed over newly con­structed gender sen­sitive toilets in two public markets in Ngaramtoni, Aru­sha District Coun­cil. Access to clean water and such toi­lets improves dai­ly comfort, safety, and economic par­ticipation for a lot of women traders.

What do you want people to understand about women’s health on this Menstrual Hygiene Day 2025? (Call to action)

Women demand better: when the ‘What Women Want’ campaign sur­veyed 1.2 million women across the world including Tanzania on what they wanted from reproductive and mater­nal services, respectful and dignified care and clean water, sanitation, and hygiene were their top two priorities for reproductive and maternal services.

Quality and safe menstrual manage­ment are important because they con­tribute to the protection of women’s and girls’ reproductive health, hygiene, safety, and prevent various diseases including UTI, yeast infections and fungi. It also contributes to stability, confidence, and mental health.

If you had just one request for the people or institutions with the power to change the narrative, what would it be?

Governments have the power to make this a reality. And media have the power to make them listen. I call on development partners across health, educa­tion, gender, and WASH sectors and the Govern­ment of Tanzania to invest money in clean water, decent toilets, hygiene services in schools, public places, and healthcare centre, that ultimately will make it pos­sible for period-friendly environments and so every woman and girl can show up and thrive everywhere and any­where.

Success stories

One girl’s journey: From hiding to hoping

At a primary school in Laghanga Village in Hanang’, a young girl once dreaded her monthly period due to the lack of clean water, filthy toilets, and no private space to change. Each month, she felt dirty, scared, and alone, often missing classes and hiding from her peers out of fear they would notice.

“When I got my period at school, I had to hide. There was no water. The toilets were dirty. I would change in secret,” she recalls.

Today, thanks to WaterAid’s WASH project, her school has clean, gen­der-separated toilets, private changing rooms, handwashing stations, and a reliable water supply

The teacher who broke the silence

In Kisarawe District, one dedicated teacher is rewriting the rules. In a soci­ety where menstruation is rarely spo­ken of openly until a traditional ritual called “ngoma” is performed, she dared to speak. Through the school’s WASH Club, she educates girls and boys about menstrual health. Her courage has sparked a ripple effect.

“Despite the ‘ngoma’ tradition that encourages silence, I sit down with girls and talk about their periods. I use the WASH Club to break the silence. Now, they feel free to ask questions, to under­stand their bodies and they no longer miss school,” she says.

Thanks to her efforts, girls now attend classes all month long. They feel safe, heard, and seen.

Empowering women in the marketplace

Beyond the schoolyards, WaterAid Tanzania is taking its mission further into the heart of commu­nity markets. At Oltrumet and Olmotony in Arusha District, two modern, gen­der-inclusive public toi­lets now stand tall, serving over 1,000 market users each day.

The toilets have spaces for the women and girls in the market to use during men­struation—they’re symbols of dignity, health, and opportu­nity.