650,000 girls set to receive sanitary pads
First Lady Margaret Kenyatta. She will this Sunday morning lead a marathon aimed at stemming the toll of 15 women who die in Kenya every day due to pregnancy-related complications. FILE PHOTO
What you need to know:
- Speaking at the weekend when she launched the programme at Labos Primary School in Marigat District, First Lady Margaret Kenyatta said the initiative brings hope to many girls who would otherwise have missed school due to lack of sanitary towels
Girls from poor families have a reason to smile after the Education Ministry rolled out a programme to distribute free sanitary towels through schools.
More than 650,000 primary and secondary school girls in over 9,000 schools in 165 districts countrywide will benefit from the drive in which some humanitarian organisations are also taking part.
RETROGRESSIVE PRACTICES
Speaking at the weekend when she launched the programme at Labos Primary School in Marigat District, First Lady Margaret Kenyatta said the initiative brings hope to many girls who would otherwise have missed school due to lack of sanitary towels.
“It is sad to note that over two million primary schoolgirls and another 400,000 from secondary schools cannot access sanitary pads during their monthly periods. This should not be allowed to continue,” said Mrs Kenyatta.
She urged pastoral communities to discard retrogressive cultural practices, including marrying off underage girls when they start menstruating.
