Racheal Udenna Foundation says addressing the challenges of the girl child is a collective responsibility

Challenges


The Rachael Udenna Founder, a non Governmental Organisation has said that addressing the challenges of the girl child is the collective responsibility of all well meaning individuals.

The foundation said this in a statement on Sunday in Abuja singed by Rachael Udenna, its founder, in commemoration of the 2020 Internal Day for the Girl Child.

“The challenges of the girl child are enormous but can be effectively addressed if all hands are put on deck.

“The International Day of the Girl Child brings to the fore the plights of the girl child and we all have a part to play in making sure that these challenges are surmounted in the shortest period of time,” she said.

She, therefore, called on all hands to be on deck to address the challenges which she said were mostly cultural and man made.

Udenna noted that there were 1.1 billion girls across the world who could grow up to change the world if they were given access to secondary education, proper nutrition, and family planning services.

“In fact, experts around the world believe secondary education for girls could be the most successful and cost effective investment against climate change.

“Researches have also shown that educated girls are less likely to contract HIV, and when women are educated, they tend to cater more for the family with their well paid jobs,” she said.

She expressed optimism that if all girls attended school for 12 years, the world would be better for it.

She also said that if nations worked towards educating their children irrespective of the sex, the risk of war would be cut down by 50 per cent.

“In reality, though, over 130 million girls are out of school world wide, with the exception to China, one in three girls are married in the developing world before reaching their 18th birthday,” she said .

This, Udenna said meant that 47,700 girls were coerced into underaged marriages on a daily basis.

She noted that at least 500 million women and girls lacked a private place to change their sanitary protection, a fact she said led to reproductive tract infections and fewer girls in school.

She maintained that there was need to change the narrative to ensure a better society.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the theme for the 2020 International Day for the Girl Child is :”The Feature of a Girl Child”.

This year is the 25th International Day of the Girl Child since Oct. 11 was first set aside by The United Nations in her Beijing Declaration to recognise girls’ rights and the unique challenges the girl child faces all over the world.

The day aims to shed light on the reasons the global society should address the challenges, biases, dangers, and injustices young girls deal with all over the world.

The day gives particular focus on parts of the globe where child marriage was widely practiced, such as Sub-Saharan Africa, Latin America, the Caribbean, the Middle East, and North Africa.

The International Day of the Girl Child was meant to promote the empowerment of young girls everywhere, while also advocating for the attainment of their basic human rights, like education and bodily autonomy.


Source: https:///foundation-calls-for-collective-action-on-girl-child-challenges/

Racheal Udenna Foundation Tasks Women on Personal Hygiene during Menstruation

Rachael Udenna Foundation, an Abuja-based Non Governmental Organisation, has advised women to observe personal hygiene during their menstrual cycle to avoid bacteria infection that can led to delayed pregnancy or giving birth to deformed new borns.

Ms. Rachel Udenna, founder of the foundation, gave the advice on Saturday at 7 Guards Battalion Lungi Barracks, Abuja during an event organised to sensitise wives of some military officers on menstrual cycles, personal and environmental hygiene and female reproductive system.

She defined menstruation as a monthly discharge of blood from a woman’s body, lasting between three to seven days depending on her body mechanism.

“Menstruation is critical for every woman that is of age, it is a normal monthly out flow of blood that all women must expect, especially when they are not pregnant.

“Learn to take care of your bodies during this period, clean up regularly, watch your hands and eat good food to boost your immunity.

“Clean from front to back whenever you use the toilet and change your sanitary pad frequently, especially when they are full to avoid bacteria infection.

”Take more of fruits and vegetables to replace lost fluid during menstruation to enable the body rebuild itself,” she said.

Udenna further advised women against the use of pieces of cloth during menstruation, adding that such cloth may have been infected.

“Use only certified sanitary pads to remain clean and tidy during menstruation,” she said.

According to her, infections during pregnancy can led to giving birth to a deformed new born.

She, therefore, charged mothers to teach their girl child, especially what they should know at every stage of their development, so that they would be thoroughly guided as they grow.

She said while menstruation presents with different symptoms such as abdominal pains, headache, and general irritation depending on the body mechanism of the individual, such symptoms should be seen as normal unless it becomes severe.

She explained that women with irregular menstrual cycle may find it be difficult to count their ovulation period, unlike women with regular menstrual cycle.

The event, which had large number of officers wives in attendance, was also attended by some teenagers. Doctors and nurses were also on ground at the event to attend to some of the women privately who may have some personal issues to raise.

Sanitary pads and other items were distributed to the women at the event, and they commended the organisers for the gesture, saying it was quite expository.

The Racheal Udenna Foundation is focussed on public health outreach, women empowerment, education, skill acquisition and philanthropic outreach targeted at the poor and vulnerable groups.