Boys step up to end period stigma, restore dignity for girls in slum

In the narrow alleys of Nairobi’s informal settlements, where many girls struggle to access sanitary towels and safe menstrual hygiene products, a quiet movement led by boys is taking place.

Boys, once a source of ridicule and shame, are now emerging as unexpected champions in breaking menstrual stigma.

At Ngunyumu Comprehensive School, located in one of Nairobi’s densely populated informal settlements, Friday afternoons are no longer just about winding down the school week.

It is a dedicated day for transformative menstrual health conversations led by pupils themselves.

Inside a classroom converted into a health club space, teenage boys and girls sit together, openly discussing menstruation, a subject that was once whispered about or avoided entirely.

The discussion is largely led by boys.

For 15-year-old Grade Eight pupil Brighton Oduor, stepping forward to speak about menstruation is an act of responsibility.
Oduor begins the conversation by breaking down what menstruation is, where he carefully chooses words which his peers understand.

“In women, the uterus sheds blood after every 28 days in preparation for pregnancy. When pregnancy does not occur, the blood comes out as periods,” explains the pupil.

Swiftly, he shifts the focus from biology to behaviour, specifically focusing on how boys treat girls during menstruation.

Oduor says stigma often begins in school corridors, where jokes, teasing, and misinformation turn a normal process into a source of shame.

“In school, some girls accidentally stain their uniforms. Instead of helping them, some boys laugh at them,” he observes.
He adds, “In such a scenario, can't we give such a girl a sweater so that she can go and change?”
Failure to embrace girls, he says, leaves them feeling shy and loose self esteem.

Oduor regrets that boys have been conditioned to view menstruation as something embarrassing rather than natural.

He shares his experience at the school during sanitary towel distribution when some boys mock girls by referring to the pads as bread or cake, turning a necessary dignity item into a joke.

Such behaviour, he says, forces girls into secrecy.

“As a result, some girls hide sanitary towels in sweaters or bags because they are afraid of being laughed at,” observes the pupil.

Further, Oduor challenges his peers with a moral question that hangs heavily in the health club room.

“Would you ridicule your daughter at her lowest? If not, why do it to girls, our classmates and neighbours?”

For 14-year-old Newton Isaboke, a Grade Eight pupil, the conversation is real.

He recalls a recent incident in his neighbourhood that shaped his understanding of menstrual dignity.

A girl who unexpectedly got her period while playing outside became overwhelmed with embarrassment. Instead of seeking help, she isolated herself and sat on the ground, confused, filled with fear of being mocked.

Isaboke gently approached and offered her his sweater to tie around her waist.

A simple act, but one that, in his view, restored the girl’s dignity.

“Just offering my sweater protected the girl’s dignity. She remains thankful to me,” he recalls.

The pupil believes boys often underestimate the emotional burden girls carry during menstruation, especially in environments where sanitary products are not readily available.

He notes that girls often miss class or withdraw from activities due to discomfort and fear of embarrassment.

“When girls do not have sanitary towels, they suffer quietly. Some even skip lessons,” he says. “Our support towards them is part of humanity. God created girls to have menses, and we should embrace them with love”.

Sited in a corner, 15-year-old Rosemary Atamba, a Grade Nine pupil, observes that the transformation of menstrual hygiene in school is visible.

She recalls a time when menstruation was surrounded by fear, teasing, and humiliation.

“Boys used to say girls smell or talk badly about us when we stained ourselves,” says Atamba.

Some boys, she adds, would openly mock girls in corridors, pointing and laughing when they accidentally soiled themselves.

The behaviour has gradually changed, with girls feeling safe in the company of boys at school.

“Now, boys help girls. At times, they notify teachers or help us get sanitary towels without making us feel ashamed,” she says.

The school Deputy Headteacher, Linet Jumanne, notes that the school has embraced menstrual health education through clubs and classroom engagement.

Involvement of boys has also been deliberate.

“They are future fathers and husbands. They need to understand menstruation so they can support girls instead of ridiculing them,” says Jumanne.

With knowledge on menstrual hygiene, the teacher says stigma at school has significantly reduced.

“Girls now carry sanitary towels openly. They are more confident,” she says.

Apart from instilling menstrual hygiene knowledge, the school also provides sanitary towels to girls, supplied through the sub-county education office.

But the supply is inadequate.

Each of the more than 200 girls receives a single packet of towels, forcing rationing and careful management of supplies.

During a visit by a team from The Standard, the school only had about 40 packets, kept for emergencies.

Though sanitary towels are supplied in schools, Jumanne notes that challenges persist in homes where water and privacy are limited, particularly in informal settlements.

“At times, we get reusable sanitary towels for our girls, but washing the items is a big dilemma. For example, where do they hang them in slums that don’t have a hanging line?

A jerrican of water sells at Sh20, a commodity most slum dwellers cannot access. So, our girls still struggle to make up,” regrets Jumanne.

In Nairobi’s slums, menstrual hygiene remains deeply tied to poverty.

Families struggling to afford food, rent, and school fees often treat sanitary towels as a secondary concern.

This forces many girls into unsafe alternatives, for example, the use of rags, cotton wool, or tissue paper.

Atamba recounts disturbing cases where desperation leads girls to sexual exploitation.

Some girls, she says, have been forced into transactional relationships with older men or boda boda operators in exchange for money to buy sanitary towels.

The pupils' sentiments are echoed by Wanjiru Kepha, Country Director, Huru International Kenya, an organisation working in the informal settlements of Nairobi.

Menstrual poverty in informal settlements, she says, is driven largely by low household incomes and competing basic needs.

In slums, sanitary towels are often not prioritised because families are focused on major basic needs.

“Many girls go without appropriate products. Parents earning as little as Sh200 from casual labour prioritise food and rent. To them, sanitary towels are a want,” says Kepha.

She warns that lack of access to menstrual products exposes girls to multiple risks, including exploitation and school absenteeism.

Again, in slums, myths and misconceptions also persist, where menstruating girls are sometimes considered “unclean,” limiting their participation in social and religious spaces.

To uphold dignity among girls, Huru International has been distributing reusable sanitary towels and underwear to support girls in informal settlements.

But demand far outweighs available resources.

A gap in access to towels was left by a cut in donor funds, particularly following the exit of major partners such as USAID.

Respective stakeholders, among them UNICEF Kenya country office, support menstrual health management programs in schools through the provision of gender friendly sanitation facilities with a bathroom and water for changing during menstruation.

Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH) UNICEF officer Winnie Rakwach explains that although menstrual hygiene in the country has improved, many girls are still unable to access menstrual products.

Rakwach notes that there is also a lack of proper hygiene infrastructure in schools to support menstrual hygiene management.

Standard infrastructure should include toilets fitted with changing rooms and running water for handwashing. Sanitation facilities should also be gender-segregated to provide girls with the privacy they need during menstruation.

“There is a stigma reduction, where girls are now able to talk openly about menstruation and attend school comfortably,” says Rakwach.

The official adds that the involvement of boys and male teachers has also helped reduce stigma among girls.

“Girls go to school knowing their needs will be met during menstruation,” she says, adding that discussions around menstruation should continue to further de-stigmatise the subject and encourage more boys, fathers, and teachers to be involved.

As Kenya joined the globe to commemorate World Menstrual Hygiene Day, commemorated on May 27, Erick Inda, director of WASH in the Department of Health in Nairobi, says more focus has been put on school-going children.

Efforts, he says, are anchored on three areas, namely breaking the silence, user care, and safe disposal.

According to Inda, schools have been prioritised through hygiene clubs that promote handwashing, personal hygiene, and menstrual care.

“The sanitary towels provided by the government are not enough, so we complement through resource mobilisation with partners, parents and stakeholders,” says the official.

Inda adds that the county is building sustainability through school-based systems, including hygiene kitty funds and buffer stocks for emergencies.

On disposal, he says schools are encouraged to outsource waste management to registered companies for safe collection of used sanitary materials. Girls with menstrual disorders are also linked to health facilities for care.

He notes that the approach has shifted from simply distributing pads to providing “dignity kits” containing pads, soap and even solar torches in some cases. Efforts also include improving access for girls with disabilities.

Despite progress, he says stigma remains a major barrier. “Even when pads and infrastructure are available, the biggest gap is conversation. There is still reluctance to talk about menstruation,” he says.

The county is now stepping up school campaigns, engaging parents, teachers, male champions and community health promoters to reach households and reduce stigma.

Although the government supplies menstrual products, Inda says there are sometimes delays linked to the financial year that often lead to stock gaps, making continued resource mobilisation necessary.

“The biggest gap in menstrual management is breaking the silence. If we don’t talk about it, it will remain a problem, leading to hygiene and environmental challenges,” observes Inda.

The latest report by UNFPA in collaboration with UNICEF on menstrual and health management 2024, Kenya has made significant strides in menstrual health policy.

For instance, Kenya has seen progressive legislative and policy milestones, including the removal of VAT on sanitary products in 2004, the Basic Education Amendment Act (2017) mandating free sanitary towels to schoolgirls.

The Free Sanitary Towel Programme, launched in 2012, was designed to improve school attendance among girls.

The program was later strengthened through the Basic Education (Amendment) Act, which mandates the provision of free sanitary towels and safe disposal systems in schools.

However, there have been implementation gaps in the program, for example, funding delays, distribution inefficiencies, and quality concerns, that continue to affect consistency in the program.

But in some counties like West Pokot, Homa Bay and Kwale, adolescent girls report difficulties in accessing disposable sanitary pads.

In recent years, responsibility for distribution has shifted across government departments, affecting coordination and supply continuity.

In 2017, the government strengthened the provisions through the Basic Education (Amendment) Act and its Section 39.

“It shall be the duty of the Cabinet Secretary to call for the provision of free, sufficient, and quality sanitary towels and provision of safe and environmentally sound mechanisms for disposal of towels,” reads a section of the Act.

In 2023/24, the distribution of sanitary towels was moved to the Ministry of Gender, then to the National Government Affirmative Action Fund in 2024/2025, to allow the Women Representatives to coordinate and address gender related issues affecting adolescent girls, including menstrual poverty.

In 2024/25, at least Sh940 million was allocated for the free sanitary pad distribution programme.