In a recent discussion concerning the 2024 budget, Comfort Doyoe Cudjoe, the Deputy Minority Whip of Parliament, made a significant impact by entering Parliament with a sanitary pad and a piece of cloth. Her aim was to advocate for the removal of taxes on sanitary products for women. Cudjoe strongly believes that by eliminating taxes on sanitary pads, these crucial items will become more accessible to women across all economic strata.
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During her parliamentary address on Monday, she argued, “Just as there is no tax on condoms, we are urging for a similar consideration for women, as menstruation is a natural aspect of our lives. Rural communities, in particular, face challenges related to menstruation.”
“This [sanitary pad] is GH₵20 in the market and I spoke to the girls in the rural communities, I went around myself with the Chairperson of the women’s caucus in this house and I asked them[rural women] how they afford to get them[pads] and the women told me that they had four girls in their puberty stage and they are menstruating, they cannot use GH₵100 a month to buy for them because they cannot afford three square meals a day,” she said.
Comfort Doyoe, the Member of Parliament for Ada constituency, maintains that numerous women and school children are unable to afford it and have been compelled to rely on the utilization of fabric scraps, which poses health risks.
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In this regard, she appealed to the speaker “We are crying, we are pleading, it’s a pity, go and investigate –Mr Speaker, I will tender the two evidence[pad and piece of cloth].”
Alban Bagin, the Speaker of Parliament, expressed his opinion on the matter and firmly stated that it is completely unjust to impose taxes on women for menstrual products, as it is not their fault for menstruating.
“It is not right to tax the period of any woman; it is not right. When you tax sanitary pads, it is taxing their periods but the proposal has come to eliminate it.”
