Environmental aspects include the geography/access, pollution, exploitation of natural resources, etc. in Kenya and how those things affect the problem of access to and education of feminine hygiene products.
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Evidence indicates that the environment of Kenya affects access to feminine hygiene products and menstrual education in the following major ways:
1) Lack of clean water
2) Lack of sanitary facilities
Environmental Aspect
ACCESS TO CLEAN WATER
In Kenya, 19 million people lack access to clean water ("Kenya's Water Crisis). This issue is especially pronounced in rural areas, which means women living in these areas lack the ability to properly clean themselves and their menstrual products. Young girls are often embarrassed by stains on their clothing so they stay home, which leads to the cycle of missing school each month and falling so far behind they drop out.
Even if girls have access to water at home, even fewer schools have adequate water supplies. Globally, half of girls attend schools without toilets ("Kenya's Water Crisis"). This further discourages girls from attending school once they start their period.
This video shows the importance of easy access to water to women and their families in Kenya ("Women and Water in Kenya").
ACCESS TO SANITARY FACILITIES
In addition to lack of clean water, many schools don't have places for female students to safely change menstrual products and clean themselves. In a report sponsored by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, only 32% of rural schools have a private place for girls to use the bathroom ("Menstrual Health in Kenya", 2016).
Even if the school does have a bathroom facility, it is usually located outside which can spell danger for lone girls walking to the outhouse. It is not uncommon for girls to be sexually assaulted on their way to these outhouses which are typically out of the view of school administrators and other adults who may be able to offer some form of protection (Tatum, 2015). When girls fear their safety, but must use the bathroom to manage their period, they are more likely to stay at home where they feel safe.
Furthermore, school bathrooms rarely lock or offer any source of privacy. Many girls feel nervous that a classmate, especially a male one, will walk in on her and she will face embarrassment and teasing at the hand of her classmates. This can be extremely damaging to a young girl's self-esteem and self-worth.
Pictured here is a bathroom at the Mosache Primary School in Riosiri, Kenya. This is typical of most Kenyan schools ("Primary School Bathrooms").
LACK OF SANITATION CONT.
Another issue facing Kenya is the lack of adequate waste disposal sites and management. This article from BBC depicts the life of families who live on and around the Dandora dump outside of Nairobi. This dump site was only supposed to be in operation for 15 years starting in 1975, but two tons of trash are still dumped here everyday (Albert, 2012).
On average, a disposable tampon or pad will take 400-450 years to disintegrate in a landfill. Kenya lacks the proper sanitation system to sufficiently dispose of the trash already accumulated, not to mention the added stress of disposable feminine hygiene products. Products are typically flushed down toilets which clog up sewers, or are littered in areas surrounding rural villages ("Tackling menstrual waste in West and Central Africa"). Though the government has done tremendous work distributing products to school girls, the use of disposable products in Kenya needs to be reevaluated.
This brief clip from KTN News Kenya explains how a lack of toilets and water at schools discourage girls from coming to school while on their periods ("Sex for pads", 2017).
You can watch the full segment at: