Menstrual Hygiene Management

Globally, many women and girls face challenges when managing their menstruation. Failure to address the menstrual hygiene needs of women and girls can have far-reaching consequences for basic hygiene, sanitation and reproductive health. Menstrual Hygiene Management (MHM) refers to the practice of using clean materials to absorb menstrual blood that can be changed privately, safely, hygienically, and as often as needed for the duration of the menstrual cycle. PMA2020 was the first survey platform to provide data on MHM indicators on a large scale. PMA2020 MHM briefs provide information on how menstrual hygiene is managed across age groups and across wealth categories, including the types of materials used to collect menstrual blood, the main environments where MHM is practiced, and the safety, privacy, and cleanliness of these environments, among other metrics.


For more on the studies on Menstrual Hygiene Management:
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Survey Results Summaries

PMA uses innovative mobile technology to support low-cost, rapid-turnaround surveys monitoring key health and development indicators. Surveys are completed by resident enumerators, uploaded to a central server via a mobile data network, cleaned and analyzed. Results are disseminated shortly after.

Country Survey Results Brief Indicators Report
Uganda PMA2020, Round 5, 2017 English
Burkina Faso PMA2020, Round 1, 2017 English French

Research in Menstrual Hygiene Management

41%

of women in Kinshasa, DRC, report having everything they need to manage their menstruation.

 

Publications

PMA has a variety of publications including briefs, reports and overview documents  that may be used to inform health policy and programming decisions. Listed below are publications authored by PMA faculty, students, staff, and partners that draw upon PMA data. 

For a full list of publications that use PMA data, please visit our Google Scholars page.

Click here to view our survey results summaries.