Sustaining Sanitation and Menstrual Health

Sanitary towels and school latrines are not one-off needs. They are recurring needs, and they require recurring funding.

A school that receives a supply of towels today needs another supply next month, and another supply the month after that. A latrine that is built this year will need to be cleaned, repaired, and eventually replaced in the years that follow. If the funding that supports these needs is not sustained, the supplies run out and the facilities fall into disrepair, and the girls who depend on them are back where they started. Our work on sanitation and menstrual health therefore includes advocacy, because the supplies and facilities that girls need depend on decisions made by people who are not in the room with them.

We advocate with county and national authorities to make sure that budgets for sanitation and menstrual health are protected. These budgets are often small in relation to other areas of education spending, and they are often the first to be trimmed when budgets are tight. We make the case that these are not optional programmes. A girl who has no way to manage her period at school cannot attend school during her period, and a girl who misses school every month is a girl who is at risk of dropping out altogether. The funding that supports sanitation and menstrual health is part of what makes it possible for girls to stay in school. We work with the authorities to make sure that the funding is in place, that it is released on schedule, and that it is not redirected to other areas.

Our Advocacy Goals

Ensuring schools meet water and latrine standards

Enforcing Water and Latrine Standards

How it works:

  • We advocate for schools to be held to standards on water and latrine provision. A school that does not have adequate facilities — latrines that lock, water for washing, separate facilities for girls and boys — is a school that is not meeting the standards that the government has set.
  • These standards exist, but they are not always enforced. We work with the authorities to make sure that schools are inspected, that the standards are applied, and that schools that do not meet them are supported to improve rather than simply noted.
  • A standard that is set but not enforced is not a standard. It is an aspiration.

The purpose of this advocacy is that the supplies and facilities that girls need are provided consistently, and that they are provided not as an act of charity but as part of what the school system is meant to deliver. A girl who has what she needs to manage her period at school is a girl who can stay in class. A girl who is left without what she needs is a girl who is at risk of dropping out. The advocacy is part of the work of making sure that the supports that keep girls in school are in place, and that they stay in place, long after the specific programmes that first provided them have concluded.

A school where sanitation and menstrual health are supported

Advocacy on sanitation and menstrual health works to make sure that the funding, standards, and policies that support girls in school are in place and are maintained over time.

Our commitment

Sanitary towels and school latrines are not one-off needs. They are recurring needs, and they require recurring funding. Our advocacy works to make sure that the supports that keep girls in school are in place and stay in place.

Join us in advocating for sanitation and menstrual health

Help us make sure that the funding, standards, and policies that support girls in school are in place and are maintained. Support our campaign, volunteer your time, or partner with us to advocate for sanitation and menstrual health across Kenya.

Every action counts—only a willingness to act is required.

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Advocacy meeting on sanitation and menstrual health

Sustaining sanitation and menstrual health

Sanitary towels and school latrines are not one-off needs. They are recurring needs, and they require recurring funding.