Including Boys in Menstrual Health Conversations

(SPMC), we have made a deliberate choice. We include boys in our menstrual health literacy interventions in communities, in schools, and through our media programmes. We are choosing to replace ignorance with knowledge. Discomfort with understanding. Ridicule with empathy.

A Conversation That Crossed Borders

This work recently connected us with Dr. Sagarika Limaye, a public health educator in India. Her LinkedIn post about the importance of including boys in menstrual health caught our attention. One conversation led to another.

What began as a digital connection has now grown into a cross-cultural collaboration.

On Friday, August 28, 2026, voices from Nigeria and India will come together for a webinar titled “Including the boy-child in Menstrual Health Conversations.”

This Indian-Nigerian dialogue will be hosted by Dr. Sagarika Limaye in collaboration with the Sanitary Pad Media Campaign (SPMC).

Speakers Include:

• Dr. Sagarika Limaye — Public Health Researcher, India
• Anikeade Funke-Treasure — Convener, SPMC, Nigeria
• Funmi Olorunmola — Programme Coordinator, CPAAI, Nigeria
• Samiran Ghodmare — Psychologist and Menstrual Health Advocate, India
• Moderator: Bolanle Oluwayemi

There will also be experience sharing from two boys, one from India and one from Nigeria.

Event Details

• Date: Friday, August 28, 2026
• Time: 7:00pm IST | 3:30pm WAT
• Venue: Zoom

“Boys need to be part of menstrual health conversations because they are part of the society in which menstruation happens.”

— Dr. Sagarika Limaye

Imagining the Future

Today’s boys will become tomorrow’s fathers, husbands, colleagues, employers, and leaders. But they do not have to wait until adulthood to learn empathy.

The boys in Ibadan already showed us what that can look like. They made pads for their mothers. Imagine if those same boys grow to become policymakers. They would support pad banks in schools. They would advocate for safe spaces and clean water for menstrual dignity.

Those are the kinds of changes that become easier when we include men in the conversation now.

It Begins with One Simple Step

Inclusion does not require a big budget or complex policy. It begins with one simple thing: allowing boys to stay in the room.

When we do that, we raise boys who understand. Men who support. Leaders who act with dignity.

The boys in Ibadan gave us a glimpse of that future. Now it is up to us to make it the norm.

Let’s stop asking boys to leave.

Let’s start inviting them in.

Let’s support projects for Girls.

MenstrualHealth #PublicHealth #SocialImpact #Education