Leadership

LET’S BE HUMANx…TOGETHER!

“There is no equity when half the population bear the physical, emotional, mental and financial distress as a consequence of the natural reproductive cycle needed to ensure human survival.”

Hi, I’m Gbemi Elekula, founder of HUMANx. I started the organization in 2020, as yet another medium to share my creative talent with the world. Only, this time, I am also solving a problem—period poverty!

Given how expensive a pack of tamponsis, I often wondered how less-privileged females and those in the rural areas were able to afford these products.From early outreach programmes that we did, I discovered that a huge number of them used rags and other unsanitary items, leading to menstrual hygiene issues. In trying to solve one problem, another is created.

What is worse? Even though periods are a normal part of life for most women (about half of the female population and up to 26% of the global population fall into the reproductive age), the subject is stigmatized and only discussed in hush tones—the secrecy leading to knowledge poverty and fueling myths and misconceptions, which adversely affect the quality of life of women and their productivity.

No! There is no equity when half the population bear the physical, emotional, mental and financial distress as a consequence of the natural reproductive cycle needed to ensure human survival. This is why HUMANx is focused on period poverty—to generate open and honest conversations about menstruation and the problems around it, as well as to explore creative ways to lessen the burden on the most affected females.

Indeed, we’ve made some progress since we started the initiative, but we are a long way from our goal.With your kind support, we can impact more women quicker. I,therefore, invite you to join us in the quest to bring about an end to period poverty in Nigeria.