Group Donates Sanitary Towels to Needy Girls

One hundred girls from Viwandani slums are assured they will not miss school for the next 12 months –at least not for reasons that they lack the means to manage their menstrual flow. This was after Doshi group of companies donated a one-year supply of sanitary pads to girls attending schools in the slum. The schools are under a project on promoting proper hygiene practices in schools within Korogocho and Viwandani slums that is being implemented by The African Population and Health Research Center.

From Right The Israeli Ambassador to Kenya H.E Jacob Keidar, Mr Vimal Vaghela, Manager Doshi Group of Companies, Ms. Bertha Juma of SaniBank Consortium and Ms. Osnat Keidar together with the some of the girls

Some of the girls present to receive the supply recounted experiences of how they have missed school during their periods. “Many of us miss school during that time of the month because we use pieces of cloth that often stain our dresses and it is so embarrassing,” said one of the girls from a community school in Viwandani. The Israeli Ambassador to Kenya H.E Jacob Keidar was the chief guest at the handover ceremony and noted that education is one important asset that guarantees a better life and girls should not miss out on their school days because they have periods. 

Any woman or girl of reproductive age will aagree that a comfortable way of managing their menstrual flow is a basic necessity. This however is a luxury to many women in resource poor settings. A recent study conducted by the African Population and Health Research Center (APHRC) and the Division of Reproductive Health, Ministry of Public Health and Sanitation shows that “because pads are not always available, girls and women in the slum communities are forced to use cotton wool, cloths (including socks), tissue paper, pages torn from school exercise books, and pieces of sponge torn from mattresses to manage their menstrual flow.” This has far-reaching health implications for the many women and adolescent girls concerned.

How You Can Help
Did you know that by donating Kshs.200 you can keep a girl in school for one year? A group of women have come together to form the SaniBank Consortium that sources for sanitary pad donations from overseas. “We ask well-wishers to donate Kshs. 200 to cover the shipping costs for the sanitary towels and then we give needy girls the pads for free,” explained Bether Juma Kokach of the SaniBank Consortium. In addition to the donations given by Doshi group, Ms. Bether gave a further Kshs. 100,000 to provide sanitary towels to girls in other remote parts of the country.

The consortium can be reached on: sanibank@gmail.com

Photo Caption: The Israeli Ambassador to Kenya H.E Jacob Keidar, Mr. Vimal Vaghela Manager Doshi Group of Companies, Ms. Bertha Juma of SaniBank Consortium (behind) and Ms. Osnat Keidar together with some of the girls from the different schools in Viwandani who received the sanitary pad donations. Ms Osnat Keidar is working with the African Population & Health Research Center to implement a project on promoting hygiene practices in some of these schools.

 

 

Tags: Korogocho; Viwandani; Jacob Keidar;

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