Kenya's schoolgirls to get free sanitary pads from government

Image caption All Kenyan schoolgirls are to get free sanitary pads (stock picture)

All Kenyan schoolgirls are to get free sanitary pads, the government has said.

It is hoped the move will improve access to education in a country where many cannot afford sanitary products like pads and tampons.

The high cost has led to an estimated one million girls missing six weeks of school every year, according to the ZanaAfrica Foundation.

But now the onus has been put on the Kenyan government to provide free sanitary towels to every schoolgirl.

The amendment to the education act, signed into law by President Uhurru Kenyatta this week, states "free, sufficient and quality sanitary towels" must be provided to every girl registered at school, as well as providing "a safe and environmental sound mechanism for disposal".

It comes more than a decade after Kenya scrapped taxes on sanitary products in an effort to make them more affordable.

Despite this, some 65% of women and girls still find them to expensive, according to figures cited in a 2016 report by non-profit consulting firm FSG.

As a result, charities like the ZanaAfrica Foundation have been providing sanitary pads for girls around the country.

Money must be used prudently: Anne Soy, BBC Africa health correspondent, Nairobi

The move to legislate the provision of sanitary towels to school-going adolescent girls has been well received by many Kenyans.

Since 2011, the Kenyan government has been setting aside funds to buy and distribute the commodity to girls from disadvantaged backgrounds.

In the 2017-2018 financial year, $5 million has been budgeted for that purpose, up from $4 million in the current year ending this month.

The new legal provision, however, requires government to provide the towels to every school-going girl who has reached puberty - it becomes an obligation rather than an option - so it will require a bigger budget.

There generally exists non-partisan political goodwill to fulfil this goal.

But the authorities will need to ensure the prudent use of that money to ensure every girls who needs the sanitary towels gets them.

School management teams will be charged with the responsibility of purchasing and distributing the towels.

The high price of sanitary products and the impact on girls' education is not just a problem in Kenya.

According to a 2014 campaign, girls are also missing school in countries like India, Nepal, Afghanistan and Sierra Leone for the same reason.

The issue has not just caused issues in developing countries.

Freedom4Girls - which usually provides sanitary pads to girls in Kenya - was asked to step in by a school in Leeds in northern England which was concerned about girls missing school.

One teenager told BBC Radio Leeds that she "wrapped a sock around my underwear" just to get through the school day.