The founder of the Menopause Support Initiative, Mosunmola Dosumu, has appealed to the federal government to support the campaign to raise women’s awareness of the menopause stage.
She said women go through a lot when they reach menopause and should be made aware of that stage of their lives.
He also called on non-governmental organisations, particularly women’s groups, to support the campaign to create awareness among women.
The initiative organised a walk for menopause over the weekend in Abuja. The event featured a fitness dance, health check, exhibition, and gifts to celebrate World Menopause Month, which is celebrated every October to create awareness among women.
Dosunmu said, “Menopause is a stage when you don’t have time for yourself. For two years, I wasn’t myself, I didn’t know what I was going through and that is what makes women go from one hospital to another and spend a lot of money.
“They spend so much time going around without knowing what they are going through. Some think that it’s witches and wizards that are disturbing them because they live in ignorance and it’s so unfortunate that our country is not doing anything about it.
“By year 2030, one out of every six women will be menopausal and unfortunately, they are going to have problems in their homes because their men do not have an understanding of what their wives are going through. We’ve had cases where men actually ran away from their wives. They have spent so much money trying to put their wives together, because they live in ignorance.
“It’s time for our government to come and partner with us and let us do this together; we can’t do this alone. We will talk to non-governmental organisations that need to come out and be a part of this. Let us create this awareness together. Women should know about their menopausal state,” she said.