A major hindrance and problem to smooth and continued learning for girls in Schools generally is the issue of monthly periods. In Kibera, this problem is made worse by running poverty levels and the general lack of education and knowledge on the part of the girls and the parents on how to handle this issue. Indeed, a survey conducted by KRTC in this area revealed that a majority of school going girls would remain at home during their monthly periods to avoid discomfort, perceived social stigma and embarrassment associated with this condition. The survey further revealed that more than 50% of the girls interviewed regularly engage in cheap, illicit and unsafe sexual intercourse to buy pads. This has resulted in child or teenage pregnancies while others end up contracting life threating disease such STD’s and HIV/AIDS.
As the saying goes, “Education is the key to success in life”. However, access to these keys normally proves tricky to slum dwellers, even more so to girls born in the slum areas. It is this area that we at KRTC felt needed our input by providing some of the deserving cases with the right kind of keys to support them through advice, sponsorship and creating enabling environment to enable them achieve or attain their educational dreams. To this end in August 2020, KRTC started a school outreach program to address this issue. The program has eight volunteers and is led by two youth leaders, Evelyn and Michael. The outreach program specifically addresses hindrance to smooth attendance of school by the girl child.
The overall objective of this program is to achieve 100% continued and un-interrupted school attendance by the girls. KRTC and Youth Better Days, a local NGO achieves this target by distributing meals and sanitary towels/pads to the deserving school girls every Friday and Saturday. More than eight schools in Kibera are beneficiaries of this program.
Activities of the outreach program.
- Distribution of sanitary towels/pads to the school girls
- Distribution of meals to schools
- Inviting counselors to undertake counseling to the youth
- Training of youth on sexual health
- Holding motivation talks
- Involving other like-minded NGO,s in these activities
ACHIEVEMENTS OF THE EDUCATION PROGRAMME:
Under this program;
- families of the less privileged have seen their daughters’ education life continued un-interrupted.
- all girls who have gone through this program have received mentorship and guidance which has helped them to go through their studies
- local leaders, other local NGOs and well-wishers have continued to show keen interest in these activities and have extended their help.
- girls child’s right to smooth un-interrupted education have been achieved to the joy of the girls, their parents and the general community
- this program has helped generate improved enrollment of girls to the local schools and improved academic performance.
The number of students in our education program has now grown greatly.
A major challenge in provision of this most desired intervention has been inadequate resources or lack thereof while deserving cases continue to rise. The provision and possible expansion of the program is to avail such opportunities to these deserving but underprivileged members of our society remain our key desire. Our support is though constrained by our limited resources. We are therefore looking for partnerships and financial support from well-wishers, NGOs and private companies, both Kenyan and international, to support these noble projects.