By Reuben Olita
Teso North Sub County has received a record 72,000 packs of sanitary towels to be distributed to Junior Secondary Schools (JSS) and day secondary schools.
Presiding over the distribution exercise to principals and head teachers at Amagoro Primary School, Busia Women Representative Hon. Catherine Omanyo said Busia is leading in the number of sanitary towels distributed in the three-day exercise that started on Tuesday and ending yesterday.
Teso North is followed in second place by Teso South and Matayos,which received 57,600 packs each to take joint second position.
Butula are ranked fourth with 48,000 packs to their credit with Nambale ( 43, 296), Teso Central (43,000), Samia ( 41,856), and Bunyala (27,000) following in that order.
Hon Omanyo said Teso North is getting the lion’s share of the distribution by virtue of having many primary and secondary schools compared to other sub counties in the county to catapult them into pivotal position, in the supplies that will last a whole year.
The Women Rep said the Busia NGAAF was allocated Ksh.10m to go towards the purchase of sanitary towels.
Thursday was the third day of the county wide distribution of sanitary towels to Junior Secondary Schools (JSS) and day secondary schools across all eight sub counties of Bunyala, Samia, Butula, Matayos, Nambale, Teso South, Teso Central and Teso North
She noted that the distribution was based on enrolment, which Teso North had comparative advantage, than other seven sub counties.
The women Rep many parents can’t afford basic needs for the girl child like quality sanitary towels, forcing them to use rags which makes them uncomfortable to stay and play.
She noted that Busia is the second county in the country to get the sanitary towels because county residents made the right decision to electing her as Florence Mutua’s successor.
Omanyo noted that she was in Adurukoit in the same sub county recently, where she issued cheques in the form of grants to women groups, youths, and people with disabilities.
The women Rep said it was a preserve of only only Arid and Semi Arid (ASAL) areas to qualify for feeding programs, but since Busia is ravaged with poverty and rampant floods, she pushed relief food for its inclusion as an ASAL area.
” From Osieko to Changara people are suffering. It’s plain truth that pupils in Samia eat one meal per day while Teso North is ravaged by water scarcity to confirm that the county qualifies as ASAL area,” Omanyo said, adding that she is pushing for every school in Kenya to get free meals.
Principals and head teachers from the respective schools converged at Amagoro Primary School, where the distribution exercise took place.
Earlier, Ms Omanyo served pupils of Amagoro Primary School with porridge to officially launch the feeding program with the pilot phase rolled out in Teso North, Samia and Bunyala Sub Counties, noting that the program will later be cascaded to all primary schools in the county.
Omanyo expressed her satisfaction at being able to bring joy to girls from humble backgrounds, noting that the poridge is nutritious since it contains minerals, carbohydrates, and soya beans, which is rich in proteins.
” A person who drinks this nutritious poridge is better off than a person who eats ugali and emolokony plus kunde. This will encourage our children to come to school,” she said, noting that the program is there to stay as long as God keeps us alive.
Kenya’s history of school feeding models highlights the various ways to increase access to quality nutrition to children.
This new public-private partnership presents potential to lower costs and synergize efforts, thereby reaching more children.
Collaborative partnerships combined with robust monitoring systems, which provide real-time data on program impact and needs, establish and sustain a transformative blueprint in the continent. 2024
will be the year to watch Kenya’s school feeding efforts.
Millicent Ochola, who is in charge of the feeding program in the Ministry of Education, said the aim of the program was aimed at ensuring pupils and students continued education, and reducing cases of teenage pregnancies and early marriages among them.
This program aligns with the implementation of a law signed by Kenya’s former President, Uhuru Kenyatta, in June 2017, which mandated the national government to provide free sanitary pads to enhance girls’ access to education throughout the country.
According to the law, the government is responsible for supplying free, adequate, and high-quality sanitary towels and promoting safe and environmentally friendly disposal methods for schoolgirls.
Teso North Sub County Director of Education Elizabeth Marangach said the area boasts of 97 public primary schools, 47 private schools, and 32 secondary schools, predicting that Teso North, which was ranked second in KCPE in the county will be number one in this year’s KCSE.
