PROGRESS REPORT April 2020
A ROTARY CLUB OF EGANVILLE CHARITABLE TRUST PROJECT:
“EDUCATION TO CHANGE THE LIVES OF CHILDREN IN A NAIROBI SLUM SCHOOL”
PROJECT SUMMARY
The objective of the project is to challenge the stigma surrounding discussion of menstruation and to make an investment in the alleviation of poverty. Students at Siloam Education Centre in Nairobi are learning about the role of menstruation in the biology of human reproduction. Menstrual Hygiene Management (MHM) workshops will also address the practical aspects of managing the monthly period hygienically. Menstrual Kits will be handed out to all female students. The Kit contains a holder and three reusable sanitary pads, as well as a bar of soap, a washcloth and a pair of panties, all in a draw string bag.
Following community consultations in April 2019, we broadened the scope of the project. We
are now planning an empowerment initiative for both the boys and girls. We will complete
our initial goal of introducing menstrual training to all the girls at Siloam Kware school. The
boys will then discuss the attributes of positive manhood and what it means to be a man these days. Then, both boys and girls will learn Life Skills to help them find work, survive and prosper in this increasingly complex world. Evaluation is built into the project as all girls complete a survey questionnaire before attending the menstruation workshop. Then they will complete another survey form at least two months later to see what they have learned and how their attitudes may have changed. Preliminary results indicate the importance of students being able to talk to their teachers about issues related to menstruation. Before the workshop, 85% of girls felt unclean, were lacking in confidence and unhappy about themselves when they had their period. After the workshop, they felt confident to ask advice from teachers and community health workers on questions regarding their experience with menstruation. We had planned holding the Empowerment Workshops this spring but that is no longer possible. We hope the government restrictions will be lifted shortly and that we will be able to hold the planned workshops later in the year.
BACKGROUND
This project has been in development since the spring 2019 when a grant from the Women’s
Inter Church Council of Canada (WICC) enabled a Rotary research and training team in Nairobi,
Kenya to lay the groundwork for a project at Siloam School. The focus of the project was on an evaluation of the impact of the start of menstruation on the confidence of female students
and their educational achievement. The dual objectives of the WICC study were to:
- Introduce Menstrual Hygiene Management (MHM) at Siloam School in Mukuru, Nairobi
- Provide all female students at the school with access to sanitary wear.
MENSTRUATION:
The taboo about discussing menstruation has consequences. One is that many girls have little or no knowledge about this important bodily function. In one survey of attitudes about
menstruation, 80% of girls of pre-menstrual age thought it was an abnormality or disease and
15% had no knowledge of the menstrual cycle at all. By staying home during their monthly cycle, girls can miss up to 20% of their education. A Gates Foundation report concluded that girls trade sex for pads, which exposes the girl to the risk of pregnancy, HIV/AIDS or other sexually transmitted diseases. Responses to a student evaluation survey indicate that many girls feel unclean while having their period. This sense of low self-esteem and feeling of unworthiness leads in time to a general lack of confidence. The menstruation taboo is deeply entrenched in the culture and education and communication are needed to enable women and girls to achieve their full potential.
PROJECT PLANNING:
Before holding workshops for students, it was important to ensure the school management,
the Board of Trustees and the teachers at the school supported the project and found the
workshop content acceptable. We held two workshops in March and June 2019 with these
groups. For the Imara Community Health Workers (CHWs) it was an opportunity to fine tune
their presentations. Importantly, the workshops were also intended to ensure that the adults
at the school are familiar with what is being taught so that they can answer any questions that
the students may ask after the workshop is over.
NEW TOILET BLOCK
A new toilet block was built during the Easter 2019 holidays with financial support from a
partnership between Siloam School and the Rotary Clubs of Eganville, Arnprior and West
Ottawa. It contains five toilets for girls and four toilets and a urinal for boys, all connected to
the municipal sewage system. It also contains a Girls’ Changing Room. Space for a Girls’ Room was a pre-requisite for introducing MHM at Siloam School.
ROTARY EGANVILLE GRANT:
On September 26 th 2019, Eganville Rotary Charitable Trust approved an expenditure of $7,694 CAD to accomplish four goals:
- Hold menstruation workshops for all 425+ girls at Siloam School
- Plan a workshop for boys on Positive Manhood
- Plan a workshop for boys and girls on Life Skills
- Investigate programs addressing slum sexual Violence
ACCOMPLISHMENTS SO FAR
Some 300 girls have attended ten MHM workshops so far in the last year. Prior to that four
other workshops were held: two with teachers from the school and the board of trustees and
the Imara health workers and, two for 80 girls. Each girl attending these workshops has take
n home a Menstrual Kit and an increased awareness of how to manage her monthly cycle.
Forty of those girls completed the second evaluation survey questionnaire.
We expect the Menstrual Kits will provoke conversation about menstruation between mother
and daughter and may help to demystify the topic.
ACCESS TO SANITARY WEAR:
The student survey indicates that the lack of access to sanitary wear is a major impediment to
girls attending school while they have their period. To address this concern, girls will be given a Menstrual Kit bag containing a holder, three reusable pads, a bar of soap, a pair of panties and a washcloth, all in a drawstring bag. These washable pads have been made by Canadian volunteers, and Dorcas Nzuki, one of the Imara CHWs. In addition, a Singer sewing machine has been purchased for the school and one of the parents has volunteered to teach students how to make their own sanitary wear. We will also investigate the possibility of the Imara Community Health Workers having a role in making reusable pads. Older girls in the graduating classes will be offered menstrual cups, however, the parents must approve their daughter’s choice. While more expensive, they are made of high-grade medical plastic and last over 10 years, while the reusable pads only last two or three years. At two recent workshops for graduates from Siloam School, 45 girls chose cups while only 15 chose
reusable pads. It was reported in Nairobi’s Daily Nation newspaper that sanitary wear valued at 107 Million KES ($1.3 million CAD) had gone missing.
POSITIVE MANHOOD:
Our consultations indicated a need to address the socialization of boys as their attitudes and
behavior have a major impact on girls and vice-versa. The path to manhood presents its own
challenges as boys encounter physical, hormonal and emotional changes as they pass through puberty. Our team leader, Scholastica Mwaka, in collaboration with public registered nurse Kate Lisike have developed a workshop on what it means to be a man in this day and age. It addresses dating and sexual relations and explores the meaning of consent. It would also encourage
mutual respect between boys and girls. This would include not teasing the girls about their
monthly period.
LIFE SKILLS:
Our consultations recommended that both boys and girls receive training in Life Skills.
Scholastica has worked with Nurse Kate on the development of a workshop session that would address issues like money management, nutrition and goal setting.
It was planned to launch the workshops on Positive Manhood and Life Skills in May 2020. That
is no longer possible and we are hoping that we can run these workshops in the fall 2020.
SEXUAL VIOLENCE:
A study has concluded that one in three girls experience sexual violence by the time they reach the age of 18. Our research team will be looking into this issue and will make
recommendations on how to avoid unwanted sexual encounters or, if they occur, how the
victim will be helped to overcome the trauma. Possible partners include Ujamaa Kenya which uses play acting as an educational tool and the Wangu Kanja Foundation which has developed a 20,000 member survivor’s network.
NEXT STEPS
If the pandemic crisis subsides in the Fall, we will continue with the evaluation workshops. We have sufficient funds to run these evaluation workshops but will need additional support to hold the Positive Manhood and Life Skills workshops.
We appeal to you, our donors, to support this initiative to empower slum youth to make a
better life for themselves.
THE RESEARCH TEAM:
Alan Fox - Project Director
Mona Fox - Coordinator of Volunteer Service
Scholastica Mwaka - Team Leader
Dorcas Nduku - Researcher/ Trainer
Dorothy Wanjiro - Researcher/ Trainer
Francis Musili - Researcher/ Trainer
Meshack Ongori - Researcher/ Trainer
Mirriam Mamba - Researcher/ Trainer
PARTNERSHIP:
We have been fundraising for the last year and have received support from the Rotary Clubs of Chesterville, Gananoque, Kingston, Montreal Lakeshore, Cataraqui-Kingston, West Ottawa,
Pembroke and North Renfrew as well as The Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) and
the Fellowship of the Least Coin (the World Council of Churches). Donations have also been
received from many individuals who support this project.
FURTHER INFORMATION:
The Rotary Club of Eganville has been supporting activities in Mukuru since 2011 when it
provided funds to expand and refurbish the Imara Healthcare Centre, which was in financial
difficulty. Since then the Centre has been accredited by the National Hospital Insurance Fund
(NHIF), has trained Community Health Workers and more recently, with Rotary support, has
opened the only Operating Theatre in the Mukuru slum. It has become a Referral Centre for
other private and public clinics in Mukuru
For further information on either the Imara Healthcare Centre or the Siloam Education Centre,
Alan & Mona Fox
International Service Coordinator
Rotary Club of Eganville
Ontario, Canada
[email protected] (Alan)
[email protected] (Mona)
February 2020 Update
The February MHM workshops are continuing at Siloam. The team on the ground are working hard to reach the MHM programs set goals. Meet the team that is making things happen.
Left to right: Francis, Community Health Worker (CHW), Dorothy (CHW), Scolar (our intermediary), Nurse Kate, Dorcus and Meshack CHW
The February MHM workshops are continuing at Siloam. The team on the ground are working hard to reach the MHM programs set goals. Meet the team that is making things happen.
Left to right: Francis, Community Health Worker (CHW), Dorothy (CHW), Scolar (our intermediary), Nurse Kate, Dorcus and Meshack CHW
January 2020 Update Jan 31st 2020 update
In September a budget of $6794 CAD was approved to hold 10 workshops on Menstrual Health Management (MHM) and to plan workshops on Men2Boys and Life Skills for male students. The graduating class received their MHM workshops and menstrual health items- either pads or cups upon graduation in November. The plan is to have 10 workshops so that all Siloam menstrual aged girls go through the workshops in 2020 and then start the Boys2Men workshops. So far 2 MHM workshops have been completed in January with another planned for February. Those completing MHM workshops receive washable pad(s) soap and basin in a drawstring bag. Presently Canadian community volunteers are sewing pads and bags as Rotary funds buy the materials.
Below: Registered Nurse Kate Lusike leads the MHM Workshop Below: Ages 11 to 13 years in Grade 5 Siloam
In September a budget of $6794 CAD was approved to hold 10 workshops on Menstrual Health Management (MHM) and to plan workshops on Men2Boys and Life Skills for male students. The graduating class received their MHM workshops and menstrual health items- either pads or cups upon graduation in November. The plan is to have 10 workshops so that all Siloam menstrual aged girls go through the workshops in 2020 and then start the Boys2Men workshops. So far 2 MHM workshops have been completed in January with another planned for February. Those completing MHM workshops receive washable pad(s) soap and basin in a drawstring bag. Presently Canadian community volunteers are sewing pads and bags as Rotary funds buy the materials.
Below: Registered Nurse Kate Lusike leads the MHM Workshop Below: Ages 11 to 13 years in Grade 5 Siloam
