By
Yusra Mohammed
Over
500 school girls in Kwale County have benefited from a full year sponsorship of
sanitary towel from Kwale Welfare
Education
Association (KWEA) a community based organization and One Heart in Time
organization.
The
program was officially launched in this month of November at Golini primary
School in Kwale and targeting class seven girls expected to sit for their KCPE
exams next year. The girls according to chairman of
the
organization (KWEA) Mohamed Mwachausa said that they got full year sponsorship
of the sanitary towels as a way of improving girl child education in the
county.
He
said most of the time many girls fail in their exams because a lot of time is
wasted at home during their menstruation
period
due to lack of sanitary towels. “Those girls expected to be in class eight next
year are our target and we want to ensure they don’t miss classes at all and
therefore everyone will have full sanitary towels for the whole year until they
are done with their final exam,’ said Mwachausa. Speaking at Golini primary
school when they officially launched the exercise Mwachausa said that they will
use
all
means to uplift the education standards of girl child and boys in the area. Primary
Schools that benefited
from
the sponsorship program of sanitary towels are Golini, Mwache, MenzMwenye,
Milalani and Muhaka
among
others.
“We want to get in the map of Kenya on
education and now we have started the journey. Poverty is not a reason for
someone to fail in education and therefore we encourage all children to take
seriously their studies,’ he said. He said they also sponsor three
mock
exams for class eight candidates in each term to prepare them to sit for their
examination without panic. Mwachausa said that they target to
sponsor
all class eight candidates in the region once they get more well wishers to
assist them.
Mwanakombo
Abdallah a pupil
who
during the event lauded the organization for coming in to assist them expressing
confidence that the sponsorship
will
help them stay in school all the time even during their periods. “It is true we
waste a lot of time at home because we feel embarrassed during that period but
since now sanitary towels are here for us we promise good results next year
because our time will be fully dedicated to studies,” she said.
Mwanakombo
narrated that the organization has helped in curbing the situation of early
pregnancies among the school girls as many of them are forced to enter in a
relationship with men who will buy them sanitary towel and soaps as many of
them are too shy to ask from their parents and also some of the parents are not
able to afford due to poverty.
 |
Golini primary school girls in Matuga
receiving
sanitary towels from KWEA, 4th left Kwale county Governor
Salim
Mvurya. Photo By Yusra Mohammed
|
“Most
of my fellow girls are too shy to ask their parents especially their father for
sanitary towel so most of the time
they don’t attend classes and this force most of the girls to enter in
relationship with old men who will give them support by buying sanitary towel and
soaps,” said Mwanakombo.Governor Salim Mvurya and his deputy Fatuma Achani who
attended the function assured residents of their commitment in ensuring
education standards are moved to another level in the area.
“Parents
play your part as well as children and we are playing ours, bursaries are there
no any child should remainhome
because there is no money,” said Achani.
Governor
Mvurya said that the time has come for Kwale to perform well and there is no
any other option apart
from improving education performance. “Our children are not in school for experiment
purpose they are there to perform well and therefore everyone should work hard
towards improving our grades,” he said.
Kwale
county director of education Juma Mwatenga urged parents to encourage their
children to aim higher and especially go to university level.“Without having
university studies there is nowhere we will be moving to
and
so let us work together and help our children,” he said
