Adolescent Girls: Body Autonomy, Agency & SRHR

Early adolescence is a critical window for behavior change, as menstrual health habits established during this stage become deeply embedded and influence menstrual hygiene practices throughout adulthood. Yet, in India, menstrual taboos and gaps in access to accurate menstrual hygiene information and resources persist-leading to long-term consequences for adolescent health, confidence, and agency. The Navya First Period Kit-developed by Centre for Catalyzing Change (C3)-tackles this reality by enabling first-time menstruators (aged 11–13 years) to navigate their first period with knowledge, dignity, and safety. Designed as a behavior-building intervention, Navya integrates tangible products with communication-driven learning. Each kit includes six reusable pads, a detergent bottle, and a hot water bag-paired with the Navya Diary, a multilingual, illustrated guide that demystifies menstruation, provides age-appropriate information, and promotes self-reflection and habit formation through interactive exercises like period tracking. Distributed through schools and frontline workers, Navya applies the SBCC principles of modeling, repetition, positive reinforcement, and social learning to establish hygienic, sustainable menstrual health practices while reducing fear and stigma.
By embedding menstrual literacy within culturally resonant, relatable communication materials, Navya creates a safe learning space for young menstruators and caregivers to talk openly about periods. This early investment in self-care practices fosters body literacy and agency-forming a continuum of positive health outcomes between adolescence and adulthood.

The transition into puberty is a key developmental stage for Very Young Adolescents (VYAs), but in Nigeria, gender norms disrupt emotional readiness, behaviour, and menstrual dignity. Evidence on these nuances across Nigeria's diverse cultures is limited. This study explored social norms influencing puberty preparation and menstrual management among VYAs in Nigeria. A Social Norms Exploration (SNE) was conducted in six states, representing different regions, with three local government areas (LGAs) from each district. We conducted 90 IDIs and 72 FGDs, analyzed using the socio-ecological model. The results showed that there are strong cultural expectations that issues around puberty and menstruation should be kept private. As a result, many mothers feel unprepared and embarrassed about discussing these topics with their children. This led many girls to rely on peers for information, which usually spreads myths, fear, and harmful misconceptions. Cultural perceptions about menstruation being impure and spiritually unclean resulted in social interactions restrictions and limited mobility for VYA girls. VYA girls avoided discussions about reproductive health due to fears of being labelled promiscuous. Additionally, in some northern communities, the onset of menstruation is often seen as a sign of readiness for marriage. This study highlighted culturally sensitive interventions to dispel menstrual stigma and misconceptions, fostering positive narratives among Very Young Adolescents (VYAs) in Nigeria. To address this, there is a need for behavioural change strategies such as school-based health education to educate girls and community engagement to help mothers guide their children, challenge gender norms, and promote menstrual confidence. 
 

In Mauritania, adolescent girls face multiple barriers to confidently managing menstruation, including stigma, taboos, and lack of open dialogue. To address these challenges, Development Media International (DMI) partnered with the World Bank's Sahel Women's Empowerment and Demographic Dividend (SWEDD) project to design an innovative menstrual hygiene management (MHM) intervention rooted in local storytelling and representation.
DMI produced four short films distributed via portable StoryScreens (audio-visual cards) to Safe Spaces in 29 schools in 2023. Two animated videos explained the menstrual cycle, MHM strategies and misperceptions. Two live-action films depicted Mauritanian families modelling supportive parental behaviour and parent-daughter communication. Uniquely, the scripts were written by Mauritanian creatives, refined with international mentorship, and workshopped with teachers, midwives, and ministry representatives. Two adolescent girls with no prior acting experience were cast as protagonists, shaping dialogue to ensure authenticity.
Feedback interviews with Safe Space mentors found that StoryScreens were intuitive, durable, and highly effective discussion tools. Mentors valued the films for simplifying complex information while sparking conversations on sensitive issues. They emphasised that the tools enhanced rather than replaced their teaching role, reinforcing trust and dialogue with adolescents. This project demonstrates that locally led storytelling can deliver both technical feasibility and relational impact. By elevating young women's voices and investing in national creative capacity, the intervention not only addressed menstrual stigma but also modelled inclusive, collaborative approaches to SBCC in a country where such initiatives are rare.

Digital health SBCC holds promise, but too often it reinforces inequalities: girls without smartphones, connectivity, or digital literacy are left behind, while (male) adult and institutional voices dominate design. Oky, UNICEF's open-source menstrual health app, flips that script. It was co-created with girls to put accurate, engaging content in their hands and to make digital a space they can shape and control.
Oky is more than an app. Its design is inclusive from the start: offline functionality, low-cost usability, disability-friendly avatars, gamified UX/UI, and strict privacy safeguards. Where digital gaps are widest, Oky reaches girls through SMS, IVR, radio shows, desktop school versions, and peer-to-peer games. In Tanzania, 25% of co-creators were girls with disabilities; in Papua New Guinea, unconnected girls access Oky via radio and IVR; in Indonesia and the Philippines, Ministries of Education have embedded Oky into teacher training and school curricula. Today, Oky has over one million users across 12+ countries.
What makes Oky relevant for SBCC is not only scale, but method. It combines inclusive tech with community engagement: teachers, parents, and community leaders are mobilized through SBC to act as "digital gate-openers," not barriers. Alongside, girl-led hackathons and digital skills trainings turn users into creators, strengthening girls' agency in the digital sphere.
Oky demonstrates how co-creation, equity-driven design, low-tech complementarity, and ecosystem engagement can democratize digital SBCC, ensuring no girl is invisible in the digital future.