Rags, leaves, feathers: How West Pokot girls manage menses
A woman holds a piece of cloth she uses as a sanitary pad.
What you need to know:
- Many parents are poor and overlook their daughters' menstrual hygiene needs.
- Due to water scarcity in most rural schools, reusable pads also pose serious health risks.
- Some girls are lured into ‘sex for pads’ relationships, leading to increased teen pregnancies and high school dropout rates.
Schoolgirls from low-income pastoral communities in West Pokot County have had to use rags during their periods. Many parents are poor and overlook their daughters' menstrual hygiene needs.
Menstruation, lasting for about five days, requires an average of Sh500 worth of pads a month. That sum is too much for most households. And due to water shortage in most rural schools, reusable pads pose serious health risks.
Some girls are lured into ‘sex for pads’ relationships, leading to increased teenage pregnancies and high school dropout rates.
Many girls soil their uniforms and suffer psychologically because of shame. Menstrual stigma also contributes to absenteeism.
Kacheliba Girls Primary School teacher Milka Njoroge, says many pupils miss lessons three days a week. “Most of the time they are absent from school because they lack pads. Those who come and start menstruating hide behind classrooms to shun embarrassment.”
She says most parents here are not exposed and don’t value education, hence don’t know the importance of pads.
“Many girls have no panties and they end up sharing, yet it is not healthy. Some even steal from their classmates. Some are boarders because they come from far and have no permanent homes, some are from less-fortunate families, hence unable to get pads.”
Ms Njoroge notes that some girls have few panties, making them uncomfortable when not washed. “Many have one or two and there is confusion in sharing mattresses in dormitories because some are clean and others dirty. They need reusable pads.”
In the absence of suitable and affordable menstrual care products, some girls resort to unhygienic and inappropriate products such as newspapers, rags, dried leaves, feathers or socks to manage their periods.
“Conditions in schools may hinder girls' ability to concentrate in class, attend school when menstruating. Lack of sanitation facilities, especially for schoolgirls, makes them vulnerable to emotional and physical challenges during their menstrual days,” she says.
She adds that many opt to hide because of the flowing blood and the flow is a taboo in many pastoral communities. “Some hide behind dormitories and fail to attend class.”
Kacheliba Girls Primary deputy headteacher Mathew Lounon says poverty and hunger pushes many learners out of school.
“In May and June, many parents and their children are always in transit, moving with animals. The few at school don’t come back in the afternoon because of hunger and they look sickly.”
He cites lack of learning materials like books and pens as another challenge. “The Competency-Based Curriculum needs a lot of writing materials.”
Teen pregnancies
Mr Lounon admits that at least three girls in his school got pregnant this year. “Some are married off, as parents value cows. When the girls sit at home, parents think they don’t want to learn, hence an opportunity of being married off.”
He notes that frequent drought affects learners and that many teenage pregnancies affect female educational attainment, as young girls who become mothers in their teenage years are more likely to end their education.
Cynthia Chepkemoi, a pupil at the school, terms it embarrassing going to school while having periods as the rags easily leak and produce a bad smell. “Many parents cannot afford the pads every month, so many girls use shreds of old pieces of fabric.”
Cynthia says they go for alternatives, which are usually unhygienic and hazardous, sometimes leading to urinary tract infections. “It would often make me feel so uncomfortable at school that I would sometimes remove them,” she says.
Support
Ajuma Foundation, alongside Rubis Kenya, has now come up with a mentorship programme to help the girls acquire life skills to navigate transition to adolescence, overcome negative peer pressure, avoid risky sexual behaviour, avoid teenage pregnancy, end negative attitudes towards education, speak up against female genital mutilation and manage menstruation.
The foundation, established by Ajuma Nasanyana, distributes free branded exercise books worth millions of shillings to learners in public primary schools. This is meant to boost literacy levels.
Nasanyana, an international fashion model born in Turkana, champions education in rural Kenya. She says high poverty levels lead to stigma around menstruation. The philanthropist, also a motivational speaker, emphasised the need for empowerment of girls with a focus on rural areas, especially in pastoralist and vulnerable communities. She was addressing learners at Kacheliba Girls’ Primary School.
“We seek to provide opportunities for women to access the resources and protections they need to change their lives for the better,” she said.
Her project seeks to tackle teenage pregnancies, period poverty, hunger and water scarcity, among other challenges hinder education for young learners. “I was touched by the lives of the girls. I also distribute sanitary pads.”
She called on the government to support girls from pastoral areas. “Many hide in the bush and fail to go to school because pads are expensive.”
