Period poverty in Nigeria: a scoping review of its drivers and implications among women of reproductive age
- 1Sydani Institute for Research and Innovation, Sydani Group, Abuja, Nigeria
- 2ACE Group, Abuja, Nigeria
- 3Sydani Initiative for International Development, Sydani Group, Abuja, Nigeria
Abstract
Background: Period poverty, broadly defined as the lack of access to menstrual products, safe water and sanitation, and menstrual health education, disproportionately burdens women and girls in low- and middle-income countries. In Nigeria, an estimated 37 million women and girls are affected, yet evidence on the drivers and implications of period poverty remains fragmented across settings and population groups. This review systematically maps the existing evidence to inform policy, programming, and future research.
Methods: A scoping review was conducted following Joanna Briggs Institute methodology and reported according to the PRISMA-ScR guideline. PubMed, Scopus, Google Scholar, and grey literature sources were searched for studies published between 2016 and 2026. Evidence was synthesized narratively and interpreted using the Socioecological Model.
Results: Sixteen studies were included from 240 retrieved records after screening and eligibility assessment. Most were cross-sectional studies conducted among adolescent schoolgirls, predominantly in Southwest Nigeria. Five thematic domains were identified: menstrual hygiene practices and material access; menstrual health knowledge and sociocultural beliefs; period poverty and socioeconomic inequalities; psychosocial, health, and educational consequences; and WASH and institutional barriers. Economic and sociocultural barriers emerged as the most consistently documented drivers across included studies, with high menstrual product costs, structural poverty, and entrenched menstrual stigma reported across the majority of the evidence base. WASH-related barriers, particularly inadequate sanitation infrastructure in public schools, were the next most consistently documented domain, closely followed by gaps in menstrual health education. Health outcomes included reproductive and urinary tract infections, and significant school absenteeism and reduced academic participation were documented across studies. An emerging association between financial dependence on male partners for menstrual materials and exposure to sexual coercion was also identified.
Conclusions: The available evidence suggests that period poverty in Nigeria is a multidimensional public health and social equity challenge requiring coordinated responses across the health, education, WASH, gender, and social protection sectors. However, the evidence base remains dominated by cross-sectional studies, highlighting the need for stronger longitudinal and intervention research.
Supplementary Information: The online version contains supplementary material available at https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-026-28966-x.
Related
- Rural-urban inequalities and determinants of period poverty among women of reproductive age in Nigeria: evidence from a nationwide study.
- Strategies for sustaining sexual and reproductive health services during recurrent flooding in Adamawa State, Nigeria. A qualitative study.
- Environmental Drivers and Spatial Patterns of Lassa Fever Cases in Nigeria: A GIS-Based Approach to Dynamic Susceptibility Mapping
- Emergence of vancomycin-resistant and multidrug-resistant Enterococcus spp. in freshwater aquaculture systems of southeastern Nigeria: implications for one health surveillance
- Human biomonitoring of occupational benzene exposure among petroleum-exposed workers in nigeria and its implications for public health surveillance
BibTeX
@article{okagbue2026period,
title = {{Period poverty in Nigeria: a scoping review of its drivers and implications among women of reproductive age}},
author = {Hilary I. Okagbue and Olanma Okezie-Okafor and Juliet Ihuoma and Eyitayo Lawal and Success David and Ifeyinwa Anosike and Munachiso Elekwa and Emmanuella Nzeribe and Stephen O. Asaolu and Sunday Nto and Victory Ekpin and Afeez Olajire and Sunday Atobatele and Sidney Sampson},
journal = {BMC Public Health},
year = {2026},
month = aug,
doi = {10.1186/s12889-026-28966-x},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-026-28966-x},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Period poverty in Nigeria: a scoping review of its drivers and implications among women of reproductive age
AU - Hilary I. Okagbue
AU - Olanma Okezie-Okafor
AU - Juliet Ihuoma
AU - Eyitayo Lawal
AU - Success David
AU - Ifeyinwa Anosike
AU - Munachiso Elekwa
AU - Emmanuella Nzeribe
AU - Stephen O. Asaolu
AU - Sunday Nto
AU - Victory Ekpin
AU - Afeez Olajire
AU - Sunday Atobatele
AU - Sidney Sampson
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/08/08
JO - BMC Public Health
DO - 10.1186/s12889-026-28966-x
UR - https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-026-28966-x
AB - Background: Period poverty, broadly defined as the lack of access to menstrual products, safe water and sanitation, and menstrual health education, disproportionately burdens women and girls in low- and middle-income countries. In Nigeria, an estimated 37 million women and girls are affected, yet evidence on the drivers and implications of period poverty remains fragmented across settings and population groups. This review systematically maps the existing evidence to inform policy, programming, and future research. Methods: A scoping review was conducted following Joanna Briggs Institute methodology and reported according to the PRISMA-ScR guideline. PubMed, Scopus, Google Scholar, and grey literature sources were searched for studies published between 2016 and 2026. Evidence was synthesized narratively and interpreted using the Socioecological Model. Results: Sixteen studies were included from 240 retrieved records after screening and eligibility assessment. Most were cross-sectional studies conducted among adolescent schoolgirls, predominantly in Southwest Nigeria. Five thematic domains were identified: menstrual hygiene practices and material access; menstrual health knowledge and sociocultural beliefs; period poverty and socioeconomic inequalities; psychosocial, health, and educational consequences; and WASH and institutional barriers. Economic and sociocultural barriers emerged as the most consistently documented drivers across included studies, with high menstrual product costs, structural poverty, and entrenched menstrual stigma reported across the majority of the evidence base. WASH-related barriers, particularly inadequate sanitation infrastructure in public schools, were the next most consistently documented domain, closely followed by gaps in menstrual health education. Health outcomes included reproductive and urinary tract infections, and significant school absenteeism and reduced academic participation were documented across studies. An emerging association between financial dependence on male partners for menstrual materials and exposure to sexual coercion was also identified. Conclusions: The available evidence suggests that period poverty in Nigeria is a multidimensional public health and social equity challenge requiring coordinated responses across the health, education, WASH, gender, and social protection sectors. However, the evidence base remains dominated by cross-sectional studies, highlighting the need for stronger longitudinal and intervention research. Supplementary Information: The online version contains supplementary material available at https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-026-28966-x.
SN - 1471-2458
ER -