About the MARS Project
School going children constitute 22% of the Kenyan population. Some of the challenges that compromise these childrens' attendance and therefore quality of education include parasitic infections, water related health issues, malnutrition, HIV/AIDS/STI, teenage pregnancy, sexual harassment, drugs and substance abuse and school truancy. It is recognised that schooling provides an organised structure that creates a solid foundation for the implementation and development of key health, nutrition and education services as well as providing key avenues for disease prevention and control.
The Healthstart programme is currently being piloted in two primary schools, Rabuor Primary School and Ombeyi Primary School. The primary deomgraphic in these schools are orphaned children. The key areas of intervention covered by the programme are:
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Values and life skills
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Gender Issues
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Childrens rights, protection and responsibilities
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Water, sanitation and hygiene
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Nutrition
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Disease prevention and control
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Special needs, disabilities and rehabilitation
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School infrastructure and environmental safety​
The programme has succeeded in rolling out an educational curriculum in these areas. The success has been sustained with the interaction of local teachers who have been able to take ownership of the programme. One area which has been identified by OGRA but unfortunately has not been addressed relates to female puberty and menstrual health support.
Girls of menstrual age don’t receive any education or support to help them understand the process of menstruation, either biologically or practically. In addition, the lack of sanitary provisions required and the absence of the cultural and social reassurance needed for the girls to feel comfortable and confident to leave the house and continue with daily life mean that the menstrual period makes a considerable but needless negative impact on the young girls of Western Kenya. As it stands, currently 70% of girls miss up to 5 days of school per month due to this issue. A lack of sanitary towels means it is uncomfortable and impractical to attend school. Ultimately the lack of support and education around the topic leads to isolation and means the girls are left feeling very upset, self conscious and confused as to the changes they feel their body is going through during what is already a difficult time.
There is a significant need to provide comprehensive education and support to girls aged between 9 and 16 years. This should include provision of adequate sanitary towels.
The project objectives are:
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To improve school attendance in girls from class 5-8. - Following implementation of this project we want to reduce the number of absent days to 0-2 per month.
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To provide all girls with education and support around menstruation and puberty - To ensure a significant increase in confidence and knowledge, this will be assessed through use of a survey before the workshop and at follow up.
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To provide all 450 girls from both Healthstart schools with the skills to make reusable sanitary towels.
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Ensure teachers and parents are engaged and feel comfortable and well trained in the educational curriculum to continue the programme - Ensure sustainability
The project was run as 16 workshops with approximately 25 girls in each workshop. A follow up visit was then conducted approximately 6 weeks after their workshop. The follow up session serves as an opportunity for the girls to raise any further questions or concerns they may have. We also re-surveyed them at this point to get an indication of the projects' impact on individual attendance, knowledge and confidence.
As an incentive for the girls to make the 6 towels they needed we offered an award if they could show they had made all 6 by the follow up visit. The award was to be soap and lotion. These items are hard to come by and a real luxury for these girls! As part of the MARS Project Harshna launched a campaign with supporters back in the UK called 'Soap you can help!' asking for donations of unwanted soaps and lotions. The campaign was hugely successful and attracted a lot of attention not only from individuals but large companies and manufacturers also got involved!
