We run a free sanitary pad programme for vulnerable girls in Kenya and Ghana. We distribute at the beginning of every academic term to rural school going girls. The plan is to not only distribute sanitary pads to schools but also in rural homes, three times a year
Access to sanitary towels remains a critical challenge for many girls across the country and the ministry remains determined to ensure that no school going girl is left out of class due to lack of pads. We have distributed sanitary pads to over 800,000 girls.
The sanitary towel distribution drive is part of charity activities to support menstrual hygiene programme.
Many girls are not able to access menstrual hygiene products with statistics indicating that 65 percent of women and girls in Kenya cannot afford them while 42 percent of school-going girls have never used sanitary pads. That is why as a Foundation we came up with this menstrual health program to support girls’ education and ensure that they live in dignity.
Menstruation can present substantial challenges to girls in low-income settings. Many girls in primary schools in rural areas skip school when their monthly menstrual cycle is in full swing. They are subjected to embarrassment and fear of teasing related to menstruation. This, together with menstrual pain and lack of effective materials for menstrual hygiene management, leads to school absenteeism, thus impeding their academic performance. Social studies in schools show that poverty and menstruation as the key factors associated with school attendance among girls.
D & B Foundation promotes woman & girl engagement by distributing sanitary pads to girls in primary and secondary schools as a menstrual hygiene intervention to reduce school absenteeism. The girl child needs to be empowered to aim high in their studies and therefore ROA is stepping up resource mobilization to be able to reach more schools and more girls.