Water

Galvinising action on Menstrual Health across the Pacific

Water is essential for women, girls and people who menstruate to be able to manage menstruation hygienically and comfortably, to bathe privately, to wash their hands, and to drink enough water during that time of the month. Unfortunately, this is not a reality for thousands of women and girls living in the Pacific, which has some of the lowest rates of water coverage in the world. Just 57% of people in the Pacific region have access to basic safe drinking water, and water for hand hygiene remains a significant challenge with only 36% of households in the pacific region having a handwashing facility with soap and water near their toilet.

This past year marked the second year that WaterAid has been working to strengthen Pacific-led menstrual health collective action. The ‘galvanising action on the Pacific menstrual health’ project is working to: establish and drive a regional multi-sectoral menstrual health network, strengthen collective advocacy, action and share learning, and to understand key opportunities to bring about improved menstrual health outcomes across the Pacific.

WaterAid supports seven local rights-holder organisations made up of local CSO’s and small businessesto lead the network across five Pacific Island Countries: Fiji; Papua New Guinea; Samoa; the Solomon Islands and Vanuatu. The group have built increasing momentum over the past year. In celebration of International Women’s Day the Network members produced and shared a video about who they were and the important work that they were doingas part of an online advocacy campaign

Over the past year and a half, WaterAid supported each partner to lead a scoping study to better document the menstrual health landscape in their country and to inform future practice. Together we have led a desk-review in each country; interviewed over 40 experts and held two workshops. The outcome is a regional report which documents the Pacific drivers, barriers and opportunities to strengthen menstrual health in the region. The Network published the landmark report on global Menstrual Health Day 2022, highlighting the policy and programming key recommendations needed for actors to progress.

The network also developed a short animated video to raise awareness of the importance of clean water in menstrual management and the unmet needs of menstrual health in the region. It was a call for greater action targeting national governments and donors. WaterAid has supported three partners to begin doing smallscale interventions to address menstrual health.

A young women washes her hands near her home at Yiwun Village, Wewak District, Papua New Guinea