Period Poverty
A period should never cost a girl her safety or her schooling.
Many girls in rural Kenya cannot reliably get sanitary products. In Siaya, researchers found girls entering transactional relationships to pay for pads.
- of girls in rural Kenya have difficulty accessing sanitary productsUNFPA Kenya, citing KDHS 2022
- 65%
- of girls in urban areas face the same difficultyUNFPA Kenya, citing KDHS 2022
- 52%
The challenge
Period poverty is not only about missed school days. A study in Siaya County found girls entering transactional relationships to get menstrual products, which exposes them to pregnancy and HIV.
In Migori County, researchers found that taboos and myths about menstruation stop girls from asking for information or help. For young mothers, the cost of pads competes directly with food and baby supplies.
How GPAK responds
We distribute sanitary pads to the girls we support, so no girl has to trade her safety for a pack of pads.
Health & HIV referralsMenstrual health education is part of our sexual and reproductive health sessions.
Health educationHelp a young mother through all of it
These challenges arrive together in a girl’s life, so our support does too.