The Voices of Women and Children with Disabilities in Ghana (VOWAC Ghana), a disability advocacy organisation for women and children with disabilities and their caregivers, has announced plans to set up a dignity kit bank in segregated schools nationwide.

This initiative aims to improve access to menstrual hygiene materials for students in these schools, reduce period poverty, curb absenteeism in class during periods of menstruation and restore the dignity of girls with disabilities.

Speaking at a ceremony commemorating the 2026 World Menstrual Hygiene Day, at the Volta School for the Deaf and Blind in Hohoe, and the Gbi Special School, the Programme Manager of VOWACGhana, Patience Atipoka Atuah, said that providing dignity kits to these banks would support the education of beneficiaries by addressing one of their major challenges as females.

“A dignity kits bank is more than a storage point for sanitary supplies. It is a statement that a girl’s body is not a barrier to learning. It is a promise that when her period comes unexpectedly, support will already be there. It is a practical response to absenteeism, shame, health risks, and exclusion,” she said.

“And for girls with disabilities, it can be life-changing. When schools are prepared, girls are protected. When supplies are available, confidence grows. When systems are inclusive, attendance improves. And when dignity is safeguarded, education becomes truly accessible,” she further added.

She also advocated for inclusive menstrual hygiene education in schools by ensuring inclusive teaching such as simple language, braille where needed, and sign language support to ensure girls with disabilities are not left out.

Madam Atuah urged stakeholders and the government to invest in long-term menstrual health systems within schools to promote good menstrual hygiene practices.

“This means budgeting for dignity kit banks which will supply for periods girls are in school, ensuring regular resupply, enhancing inclusive WASH facilities, embedding menstrual health education into school support systems particularly accessible toilet facilities, and fostering local ownership so this effort endures beyond campaigns and commemorative days,” she said.

“Real change is not measured by one event. It is measured by what remains in place after the speeches are over. So today, I call on policymakers to recognise menstrual hygiene as an inclusive education issue and a disability rights issue. I call on school leaders to create safe and prepared environments for every girl.”

“I call on partners and donors to support dignity kit banks, an initiative by VOWACGhana in segregated schools. I call on communities to break the silence, reject stigma, and protect the confidence of every girl. And I call on all of us to move from sympathy to systems, from awareness to action, and from promises to accountability,” she concluded.

To commemorate the day, VOWACGhana provided dignity kits to 120 girls of Volta School for the Deaf and Blind and the Gbi Special School.

Each package included sanitary pads, panties, undershorts, bathing soaps, washing soaps, deodorants, pomade, toothpaste and tooth brushes to ensure they maintain good hygiene during menstruation.

A representative of the Volta School for the Deaf and Blind in Hohoe, George Agbefu Odikro, appreciated the donation by VOWACGhana to students, explaining the gesture was appropriate considering the fact that “the beneficiaries lack these essentials as parents are unable to provide these items of necessity for their wards and as such some are unable to report to school and stay in class”.

He said the institution is expecting the promised dignity kit bank in the shortest possible time and appealed for the construction of a befitting sanitary facility to enhance menstrual hygiene among students.