Scotland becomes first country to offer feminine products free of charge

World

Published: 2020-11-27 18:25

Last Updated: 2024-03-28 12:43


Credit: www.goodhousekeeping.com
Credit: www.goodhousekeeping.com

Scotland this week became the first country in the world to provide access to free feminine products following a four year campaign that has shifted public discourse around female menstruation.

The Period Products Act, which aimed to provide free and universal access to period products in Scotland, was passed unanimously Tuesday.

This act places a legal duty on Scottish authorities to make period products available for all.

North Ayrshire in Scotland has been providing free feminine hygiene products in public buildings since 2018.

Scottish Labor’s health spokeswoman Monica Lennon told The Guardian that it was a “proud day for Scotland.”

According to The Guardian Lennon said this decision “will make a massive difference to the lives of women and girls and everyone who menstruates. There has already been great progress at a community level and through local authorities in giving everyone the chance of period dignity.”

-Period Poverty-

According to the School of Public Health at the University of Michigan, one in five girls miss school due to a lack of menstrual products, making period poverty an important, yet frequently ignored public health crisis.

Period poverty is the phenomena of being unable to afford period products which force women or girls to use items like rags, towels and toilet paper as an alternative.

Period poverty has become particularly prevalent as the struggle to pay for basic period products on a monthly basis has surged during the coronavirus crisis, according to Scottish charities.

According to The Guardian, women and girls are estimated to spend an average of GBP 13 a month on period products and several thousand pounds over a lifetime.

The period product scheme is estimated to cost about GBP 8.7 million.

The Act will also require educational institutions to provide the products free of charge, announced First Minister Nicola Sturgeon in 2017. The Scottish government has also funded a project in Aberdeen to deliver free period products to low-income households as well as a further GBP 4 million for councils to continue the roll-out in other public institutions.

“It’s an important message in the middle of a global pandemic that we can still put the rights of women and girls high up the political agenda,” said Lennon.