Lamgba Primary School, situated in the Arilo sub-county of Yumbe district, is grappling with a significant challenge when it comes to maintaining proper menstrual hygiene due to the absence of adequate sanitation facilities.
This school, located near the Yumbe-Koboko border, currently operates without a functioning pit latrine. The only existing 5-stance pit latrine has fallen into disrepair and is no longer in use. Furthermore, the school lacks bathing shelters and changing rooms for its female students.
Night Rose Driciru, the Senior Woman Teacher at the school, emphasizes the dire sanitation situation, explaining that it compels menstruating girls to bathe in the nearby bush and wait for their clothes to dry after washing, while others have even dropped out of school.
“We struggle to support girls during their menstrual periods due to the lack of privacy resulting from inadequate sanitation facilities. Our girls now resort to bathing in the bush, exposing them to risks like snake bites,” she lamented.
Samuel Enata, the deputy head teacher, points out that the lone pit latrine was shared by both boys and girls, as well as the teachers, before its condemnation. He notes that the school cannot afford to construct new latrines due to the limited funds provided by the Universal Primary Education (UPE) capitation grants.
“The issue of teachers sharing toilets with pupils is not new. As a school, we receive a UPE capitation grant of only two million shillings, which is insufficient to build new latrines as it is an expensive endeavor,” said Enata.
Meanwhile, Bashir Wani, a primary three pupil at the school, revealed that some students are compelled to run home to attend to their nature’s call, while others resort to defecating in the bush.
Rasul Drajiga, the Yumbe Senior Assistant Chief Administrative Officer, pointed out that the district’s delayed response was due to the late reporting of the issue by school authorities. He assures that the district has now taken the initiative to construct a new latrine without unnecessary delay.
“Already a position has been taken by the district to address this issue, despite the delay in reporting by the school authorities. We are determined to take action,” he stated.
Lamgba Primary School, initially established as a community primary school in 1998, received government support in 2004. The school currently has an enrollment of 301 pupils, according to records from the District Education Department.