The United States (US) government today donated 171,000 packets of sanitary towels to the Ministry of Education (MoE) that will benefit 500,000 school girls in public primary schools in the country.
The Principal Secretary (PS) for Basic Education Dr Belio Kipsang received the donation on behalf of the government at the Kenya Institute for Curriculum Development (KICD).
D Kipsang thanked the USAID, the Embassy of US in Nairobi and the people of USA for the donation, saying the government already allocated Ksh940 million to the sanitary towels programme in the 2023/24 financial year.
He said provision of sanitary towels will address the needs of many girls of menstrual age in schools whose greatest challenge is absenteeism related to their reproductive health.
“Additionally, the provision of sanitary towels to many needy girls has reduced dropout rates, leading to girls completing their education and has also significantly improved their performance,” Kipsang said.
The Consular General of the US Embassy in Nairobi Deborah Miller said menstruation has become a barrier to achieving girls’ dreams in Kenya.
“Girls miss school; up to 20 per cent each month, simply due to a lack of affordable sanitary products,” Miller noted, saying that some of the girls drop out altogether, while others are forced to resort to harmful practices to manage their menstruation.
She said the United States government is determined to help change this reality.
Present during the occasion included Chief Executive Officer of KICD Prof Ong’ondo, Director General in the Ministry of Education Dr Elyas Abdi, and senior officials from the ministry and the US Embassy.
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