Britain launched a global "period poverty" fund and task force on Monday to help all women and girls access sanitary products by 2050 and to tackle the stigma around menstruation.

It is estimated that half of all women and girls in poor countries are forced to use rags, cloths, grass and paper during their periods since many can't afford to buy sanitary products, the U.K. government said.

A survey by the children's charity Plan International found that 10 percent of girls in Britain alone have been unable to afford sanitary products.