The Cycle Care Project

The Cycle Care Project is Talk2Me Foundation’s initiative to promote menstrual health and hygiene among adolescent girls. Periods should not decide whether a girl goes to school, speaks in class, or feels able to take part in ordinary life. Too often, they still do.

Many girls face a cluster of related challenges: they cannot access menstrual hygiene products; menstruation is treated as something to hide; they miss school during their periods; and they lack accurate information on menstrual health. Cycle Care was designed to reduce those barriers - products, stigma, absenteeism, and poor menstrual health practices - at the same time.

The project was implemented so that girls in need receive menstrual hygiene products, and so that products are not handed over in silence. Education sessions taught proper menstrual hygiene management. The work promoted dignity, confidence, and school attendance. It also created awareness and encouraged open conversations about menstruation, so that period health is treated as a normal part of growing up rather than a private emergency.

Talk2Me Foundation mobilized resources and worked with relevant schools and community stakeholders to carry out the project. Girls were reached where they already learn and live, rather than through a one-off event disconnected from their daily environment.

Beneficiary girls took part in menstrual health education sessions and received Cycle Care Packs containing essential menstrual hygiene items. The packs met an immediate practical need. The sessions met a longer one: accurate information, and the chance to ask questions.

Girls were able to talk about menstrual health, personal hygiene, and self-care, and to receive clear answers. That combination - supplies plus education - is the core of Cycle Care.

The project reached adolescent girls in the target communities and schools. Over 300 girls received menstrual hygiene packs. The wider programme continues to target girls who still struggle to access products.

The intervention contributed to improved awareness of menstrual hygiene, increased confidence among beneficiaries, and a reduction in the barriers that menstruation can place in the way of school and community life. A girl who has what she needs, and who understands her body, is better able to stay in class and take part without shame.