Under the Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene Partnerships and Learning for Sustainability (WASHPaLS) project, Iris Group led action research to better understand the relationship between MHM / MHH and women’s economic empowerment. Iris Group partnered with four private sector workplaces in Nepal and Kenya to: implement pilot interventions that provide menstrual products to women workers; facilitate education and behavior change communication; and support the development of MHM-friendly workplace policies. The interventions were custom designed based on formative and baseline research and evaluated using a mixed methods approach (pre- and post-test). It also conducted a cost-benefit analysis to determine if providing adequate MHM in workplaces improves business and social outcomes, including women’s economic empowerment.

In all workplaces, the interventions led to improved MHM, including greater access to better menstrual products, less discomfort and anxiety about leakage, greater confidence about managing periods in the workplace, greater productivity and improved work performance and job satisfaction, and a more supportive environment for menstruating employees. The cost-benefit analysis demonstrated that the benefits of the intervention outweighed the costs in all workplaces.

The project garnered great attention from the business community, leading to a follow-on activity in Nepal. The new project enables local organizations to implement workplace interventions for improved menstrual health and hygiene and sexual and reproductive health - a critical gap identified during previous action research.

To learn more about this activity, please visit the Global Waters website at https://www.globalwaters.org/HowWeWork/Activities/menstruation-workplace, or contact us if you have any questions or requests.