By H Patricia Hynes
August 31, 2026

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Children attending Amani Children’s Family Primary School in Nairobi, Kenya, are first given warm water, bathing soap and a seaweed-based body gel for washing before entering their classrooms, because they lack clean water at home. If they need to wash their uniforms, they are given a change of school uniform and a place to dry their clothes. Most of the children live in informal settlements that lack clean water, sanitation and hygiene; school is their only provider of these essential public health needs.

They are taught to clean the school that offers them not only an education but also essential hygiene items, from toothpaste and toothbrushes to sanitary napkins, that are so important for girls’ safety. Otherwise, they are vulnerable to men buying them pads in return for sex.