Dialogue on Dignified Menstruation in Karuna Mahila Vidyalaya Kapilvastu, Lumbini Nepal

Dialogue on Dignified Menstruation: Karuna Mahila Vidyalaya, Kapilvastu, Lumbini

In July 2026, the Radha Paudel Foundation and the Global South Coalition for Dignified Menstruation partnered with Karuna Mahila Vidyalaya (KMV) in Kapilvastu, Lumbini, to explore and address menstrual discrimination within the school community.

Over four days (18–21 July, 2026), 41 participants -teachers, School Management Committee members, and girls' leaders from grades 6 to 10 - took part in dialogue and training sessions built around the principle of Miteri (mutual love and respect). Through guided meditation, participatory exercises, and group reflection, participants mapped their own experiences and beliefs around menstruation.

The findings revealed deeply embedded practices of silence, restriction, and stigma - from euphemisms that frame menstruation as impurity or punishment, to restrictions on mobility, touch, and diet - passed down through generations regardless of religious background. Participants connected these practices to broader issues of child rights, malnutrition and anemia, gender-based violence, child marriage, and barriers to education, while also examining them against Nepal's constitutional and human rights protections.

The dialogue concluded with a six-month action plan for KMV to become a dignified-menstruation-friendly school - including curriculum integration, parent engagement, child clubs, and community awareness activities -as a step toward empowering girls to take control of their lives, now and forever.