Ujaan Project
Empowering Girls: The Ujaan Project’s Mission to Ensure Dignity and Health Through Sanitary Napkin Distribution and Awareness Programs
Ujaan project is the solution to the challenges faced by women as their basic right to address menstrual hygiene and reproductive health care has not only failed to be addressed but also not spoken about. The dire consequences of this situation is that an estimated 70% of all reproductive diseases are caused by poor menstrual hygiene, correlating with a similar proportion of rural women who do not use sanitary napkins, but instead resort to makeshift, unhygienic alternatives ranging from ash, sand, and hay to old rags, plastics, or newspapers. Additionally, on average, girls miss six days of class each month due to their periods, contributing to more than 20% of girls dropping out of school each year.
The double whammy of the prohibitive cost of sanitary napkins and the cultural taboo associated further catalyses the issue and enhances the gender gap.
Ujaan project is working towards a future to enable grassroots-level women to be empowered. They have become educators of menstrual health and hygiene and also small-scale entrepreneurs. In the process “Ujaan Bahini” is formed at different locations working as advocates and opening the door for good quality menstrual hygiene products in remote areas at an affordable price.
UJAAN PROJECT 2023-24
Collected Sanitary Napkins
Distributed in 2023-24
Menstrual Health and Hygiene Awareness Camp
About DITO's awareness camp
Menstrual health and hygiene are vital for the empowerment and well-being of women and girls, preventing infections and supporting school attendance. To raise awareness and dismantle taboos, DITO organized three Menstrual Health and Hygiene (MHM) camps in 2023—on April 11 at Khalna Ekta Mahila Sangha, May 2 at Thalia Panchayat, and May 10 at Tajpur Panchayat. These camps educated women and schoolgirls on menstruation and hygiene practices, fostering confidence and awareness.
Additionally, the DITO Social Welfare Association launched a sanitary napkin brand called Ujaan, distributing sanitary napkins free of charge to poor and disadvantaged women. This initiative promotes healthy menstrual practices, encouraging the use of sanitary napkins over traditional cloth to reduce the risk of infections. In the 2023-24 fiscal year, 396 beneficiaries received sanitary napkins, totaling 791 packets distributed.
