Women play a vital role in the perpetuation of life. This is because they have wombs for housing the next generation of humans. Women are blessed because they have a uterus (womb) for housing the next generation of humans. However, the possession of a womb comes at a huge cost- the monthly sacrifice of blood called menstruation. Menstruation is the periodic shedding and discharge of blood and mucosal tissue from the inner lining of the uterus through the vagina. It is commonly and euphemistically referred to as ‘Period’. Menstruation is an hallmark of femineity. It starts between the ages of 12-15 years and ends during menopause which occurs between the ages of 45-55 years. On an average, a woman has ‘periods’ for a period of 42 years. This is approximately 500 menstrual periods in a woman’s lifetime. Menstruation occurs for an average of 5 days in a month. By simple multiplication, the implication is that a woman bleeds for about 2,500 days during her lifetime! Today, the 28th day of May is globally recognized as Menstrual Hygiene Day. This has a symbolic meaning. May is the 5th month of the year and women menstruate for an average of 5 days every month. Also, the menstrual cycle averages 28 days. Menstrual Hygiene simply means the act of maintaining the body’s cleanliness during menstruation. Unhygienic practices are the harbinger of diseases. Specifically, unsanitary practices during menstruation can lead to Urinary Tract Infections and Genital Tract Infections. The paraphernalia of menstrual hygiene comprises water and menstrual pads. Once water and menstrual pads are available, menstrual hygiene can be observed properly. The availability of water may not be a challenge to most people. However, clean water is still somehow inaccessible in some parts of Nigeria. UNICEF reports that as at 2017, 69 million Nigerians, that is about 40% of the population do not have access to clean water and cleaning agents. The erratic electricity supply and high cost of fuel to drive generators are factors that make water inaccessible and unaffordable in Nigeria. Without water, girls cannot wash and clean themselves while they are on their ‘Periods’. In Nigeria, the cost of getting water is not as much as that of menstrual pads. In fact, ‘Period Poverty’ is a term that has been used to refer to the inability of girls from low-income households to afford sanitary pads during their menstruation. According to World Poverty Clock report as of June 2018, Nigeria has over 44% of her population living in extreme poverty making her the world’s poverty capital. There are over 40 million women and girls who cannot, by current economic standards, afford to buy sanitary pads. A good sanitary pad is not less than 300 naira in the market but a woman who can hardly feed will have to buy one compulsorily. To be candid, menstrual pads are expensive and a lot of school girls, female prisoners, internally displaced persons and other indigent Nigerians cannot afford it. Menstrual pads are essentials and should not be as expensive as they are. They should be treated just like toilet paper because they serve, essentially, the same purpose- items to clean products released from the body. It is unfair to womenfolk that government and other organizations have over the years subsidized, and most times distributed condoms free to people without considering same for female sanitary pads. A pack of condoms costs 100 naira. If government can subsidize condoms which are basically used by men, then there is no reason they should not subsidize sanitary pads which are basically used by women. Sexual intercourse is a voluntary act, menstruation is compulsory. Sex is a choice and can be avoided but menstruation is not a choice. For sexist reasons, we encourage safe sex but discourage safe bleeding! It is discriminatory to subsidize condoms and not do the same for sanitary pads. Government, civil society organizations, stakeholders, legislators and policy makers are all culpable of this bigotry and injustice against women. This is in addition to the fact that menstruation, which is a normal body function like urination, is till met with silence, taboo and stigma. In some areas, women are isolated when they are on their period and not allowed to mix with other members of the society. Gender equality is essential for the achievement of human rights for all. The idea of human right is that people have a right to be treated with dignity. The Human Right to Water and Sanitation (HRWS) was recognized as a human right by the United Nations General Assembly on the 28thof July 2010. Nigeria is a party to the United Nations declaration of the Right to Water and Sanitation. The Human Right to Water entitles everyone to sufficient, safe, acceptable, physically accessible and affordable water for personal and domestic use. On the other hand, the Human Right to Sanitation entitles everyone to sanitation services that are safe, socially and culturally acceptable, secure, hygienic, physically accessible and affordable, and that provide privacy and ensure dignity. The right to menstrual hygiene is subsumed under the Human Right to Sanitation. The onus is therefore on government to subsidize menstrual pads to promote good menstrual hygiene in the country. Menstrual pad subsidy is a right that women deserve so that a reasonable percentage of their income is not frittered away on the acquisition of menstrual pads as if it is a luxury item.NIFEMI LEON IWALEHIN, PORT-HARCOURT.