Education Kenya Project #13305

Sanitary towels to Poor Girls & Widows in Kenya

by Fountain of Hope Youth Initiative Group

Sanitary towels to Poor Girls & Widows in Kenya

Project Report | Jun 17, 2014
Adding value to your dollar; multiplying beneficiaries numbers

By James Waruiru | Project Manager

Mrs. Grace a board member handing out kits

We are sending our greetings and some updates with great excitement and gratitude to you friend for your donations towards our project and to global giving for not being just a fundraising platform but a platform where projects like ours incubate, hatch, crawl and fly impacting lives. Global-giving has provided a platform where relationships are made and nurtured, without them and without you our project will not be able to keep so many girls in school during their menstrual periods. We have done more than just keeping them in school during their menses; this project helps them restore self esteem and dignity. We also incorporate reproductive health education with greater effort directed to HIV/Aids awareness across gender, proudly we can report that because of your support this project has helped by:-

Provoke an open discussion and open mindedness on issue of menstruation, break the stigma surrounding the menstruation issue and involve the fathers (men) in the discussion and in providing for menstruation needs as an obligation.
Increase policy makers and community leaders’ understanding of the consequences of unwanted pregnancies and STDs among Kiambu county youths.
Encourage policy makers and community leaders to support and advocate for appropriate sexuality education, counseling, and services for youth.
Increase the knowledge of youth aged 10 to 19 about the consequences of irresponsible sexual activity; encourage healthy and responsible sexual behavior. Provide condoms and safe sex education to youths between 20-24 years who are mostly in college and universities and already engaging in sexual activities.
Encourage youth who are not yet sexually active to postpone the onset of sexual activity; encourage sexually active youth to seek counseling and appropriate services.
Include the LGBTI youths in HIV/Aids and STIs education and awareness

Since 2007 when we started the sanitary towels and undergarments program to poor girls, the program now caters for more than 500 disadvantaged girls (up from 350) ensuring that they remain in school during their menses. This is the program that won us an international award in 2010 from Kansas University USA scooping 2^nd prize in a hotly contested competition from social grassroots projects all over the globe.

In January this year we won first prize on an online challenge from Travelgiver where hundreds social projects competed and people around the globe were voting for what appears to them as most impactful geassroot project. This victory and global appproval is because of you and we want to simply say “THANK YOU”

Our plan for the near future –

Since 2012 we have been giving the girls reusable, washable sanitary kits which have prooved to be very effective, the only hurdle is we have to wait for donations of this kind to be shipped from abroad and this has hampered the project from growing and benefiting more young women.

Out team has now received training and mentorship on how to make reusable sanitary kits. Our emmediate plan is to put up a sewing centre to make reusble, washable sanitary towels. This will not only enable the project cater for more women but reusable towels are good for environment since they are made of 100% biodegradable material, they are cheaper than disposable pads and good for one’s health. To enable us undertake this project we need to raise 30,000$ and this is where we seek your help. You can either donate or join us and help us fundraise for the project. On sustainability we already have commitments from many county governments in Kenya that will buy kits from us to supplement what we give for free as charity. The project will there fore have 2 arms, one charitable and one commercial although our primary vision will remain to help as many young women and have the project sustain it self but never a profit making venture.

Annabel, a beneficiary sharing girls experience

A session on reproductive health education

Faith faccilitating on hygien education

One of our best! teacher Maggy making a demo

'no more gloomy days...here comes green periods'

happy beneficiary in her own words ''thanks you''

Links:

Won 2014 first prize in Travel Giver Social Challenge

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Nov 15, 2013
Reversing periods of shame to periods of learning & play

By Martha Muiruri | Program Coordinator-SanitaryTowels Program

sanitary towels beneficiaries

This project has continued to impact lives of many girls. By providing them with sanitary towels and panties we are able to keep them in school during their menses. What is even more interesting, the program also organises periodic meetings where we bring the girls together where they are taught reproductive health education and career mentorship. Therefore we are proud to report because of your generous support this project is reversing the periods of shame where girls would suffer shame and miss school during their menstrual periods to periods of learning and play. Just like boys, girls also are able to participate in extra-curricular activities in school and so they too can pasue their dreams and exploit their talents in sports.

However, this program can not suceed much if men are not involved in the business of providing for their daughter's menstrual needs. The issue of menstrual periods is still sorrounded by a lot of stigma and therefore covered with shame. There is a lot of negligence by men in caring and providing for their daughter's menstrual needs. We need your support so as to conduct participatory workshops where we will provoke a discusssions among the men that will be geared towards involving them in taking women menstrual issue as a man's issue and therefore a responsibility to provide both for daughters and other disadvantaged girls like orphans and destitude young women and widows. With your generous support we hope to break the African cultural norm that has continued to let women suffer in silence and alone in dealing with the issue of menstrual periods.

We invite you to watch this short video from one of our beneficiary talking on the impact of the project on her life and the lives of many other girls. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KmSBZF_SEeY&feature=em-upload_owner#action=share

This program won 2nd prize in Out side the Box Prize from Community Tool Box, an initiative of Kansas University USA for exhibiting innovation and impact in the grassroots. The project emerged second from 309 entries from 42 countries in the globe. We invite you to click on this link to learn more http://fohlc.org/media/press/out-of-the-box-prize-second-place/

Out side the Box Prize winner-2nd

Links:

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Aug 6, 2013
Keeping girls in school, restoring dignity.

By James Waruiru | Project Manager

Mary Njoki - beneficiary

Since 2007 Fountain of Hope Life centre has been giving hope to poor young women. By providing young women with sanitary towels and undergarments we are able to keep them in school during their menses but even more important help them restore self esteem and dignity. Starting with just a single girl the number grew fast from 1 to 200 by 2008. This project won 2^nd prize in Out of the Box prize, an initiative of Kansas University USA in 2010. We emerged 2nd from a stiff competition of 309 projects from 42 countries in the globe. We were recognized because of social impact & innovation.

Now with your support the project is able to support 350 girls, over 100 young mothers and widows. Besides providing the girls with sanitary towels and under-panties, we also provide them with reproduction health education, hygiene education, career mentorship and motivation. We also involve the boys from poor homes with these talks and training because they are equally vulnerable to HIV/Aids.

This is what Mary Njoki one of the beneficiaries pictured above say about the project, '' I thank Fountain of Hope for the sanitary towels. For many years I have been using pieces of rags and cotton wool because my poor mum could barely afford to provide for me. The situation got worse when I got pregnant and had to drop out of school. I thank Fountain of hope for all support towards me and my child including the counseling & clothing. I am very happy now I do not have to worry when my periods comes, the little money that my mum and I get from manual works we now put in food and other basic needs''.

We thank you from deep down our hearts because without you and your dollar we would not achieve this. We welcome you to be part of this and therefore we kindly ask for your views and input how we can gain more visibility to donors & how we can best tell our impact stories. Please follow us on social media for continued updates on the project. We respectfully urge you to share with your friends and ask them to like our face-book pages; - Sanitary Towels & Under Garments for Poor Girls in Africa & Fountain of Hope Life Centre

With your continued support, our future plan is to put up a sewing industry where we will make re-usable sanitary napkin which provides for a long term solution and are environmentally friendly.

Links:

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