CROSS RIVER, CALABAR – The First Lady of Nigeria, Senator Oluremi Tinubu, has launched the distribution of 370,000 sanitary towels across the 36 states and the FCT, investing N2.55 billion under the Renewed Hope Initiative (RHI).
According to a statement by Faith Okon-Egbujiem, Press Secretary to the Wife of the Cross River State Governor, the initiative, tagged Flow with Confidence, seeks to promote menstrual hygiene, reduce absenteeism among adolescent girls, and restore dignity to young women.
Represented at the Calabar flag-off by Bishop Dr. Eyoanwan Bassey Otu, Wife of the Cross River State Governor and State Coordinator of RHI, Mrs Tinubu said no girl should miss school due to lack of sanitary products.
“It is unacceptable that our girls miss school days monthly because they cannot afford pads,” she stated. “Some resort to unsafe alternatives, while others remain at home entirely.”
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Mrs Otu disclosed that 10,000 packs of sanitary pads were handed to the state’s First Lady for distribution to 10,000 rural girls. She explained that each beneficiary would receive a one-year supply.
She further appealed to wives of Local Government Chairmen to take ownership of the intervention, stressing that “as government’s closest arm to the people, your role is crucial in scaling up this initiative and ensuring pads reach deserving girls.”
Governor Bassey Otu, represented by the Commissioner for Social Welfare, Bishop Dr. Margaret Ene-Ita, commended the project. He said it would restore dignity and confidence to rural girls who have long lacked menstrual health support.
“This is a wholesome gesture by the First Lady of Nigeria,” the governor said. “It addresses one of the primary concerns of young girls in underserved areas.”
Also speaking, Dr. Comfort Oko, Senior Special Adviser on Administration, emphasized that the pads must not be sold under any circumstances. She reminded beneficiaries to value hygiene as much as academics.
During the Calabar event, 250 schoolgirls received a one-year supply of sanitary pads, while wives of Local Government Chairmen from all 18 LGAs were handed consignments for distribution.
By addressing menstrual hygiene through RHI, the First Lady demonstrates situational ethics in governance, linking health and education with dignity and gender equity, the Press Secretary added.