See Haruna Iddrisu’s facial expression as Ato Forson announces free sanitary pad budget

Minister of Education and Member of Parliament (MP) for Tamale South, Haruna Iddrisu, has attracted attention on social media following his reaction during the presentation of the 2027 Budget Statement and Economic Policy by Finance Minister Dr Cassiel Ato Baah Forson.

Iddrisu was captured with a straight face during the budget presentation on Thursday, November 12, 2026, when Dr Ato Forson announced that GH¢295 million had been allocated to support the distribution of free sanitary pads to schoolgirls across the country.

The allocation forms part of the Ministry of Education’s GH¢48 billion budgetary vote, which was presented to Parliament by the finance minister.

According to the budget, the funding is intended to support the distribution of free sanitary pads to improve girls’ participation in education and address menstrual-related barriers that affect school attendance.

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The Free Sanitary Pad Initiative was launched by the government in Accra in April 2025, following President John Dramani Mahama’s pledge in his State of the Nation Address to eliminate menstrual barriers to education.

In October 2025, the Ghana Education Service (GES) announced plans to distribute 6,607,095 sanitary pads to schoolgirls across all 16 regions of the country to ensure that no girl misses school because of her menstrual period.

The service indicated that the initiative was designed to provide sanitary pads to all schoolgirls, from the basic to the second-cycle level, on a monthly basis throughout their period of schooling.

However, the 2027 Budget Statement does not specify the number of girls expected to benefit from the initiative, the quantity of sanitary pads to be distributed, the distribution timetable or the cost per sanitary pad.

The GH¢295 million allocation forms part of the government's broader education expenditure, while total government expenditure for 2027 is projected at GH¢389 billion.

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