Govt wakes up to high dropout rate of girls Edu Dept says lack of separate toilets leading to girls leaving schools midway

KATHMANDU, JUL 17 -
The Education Ministry has decided to build 2,000 toilets for girls in government schools this fiscal year. The move follows findings that lack of toilets for girls in schools is the major reason behind female students’ high dropout rate.

A recent report prepared by the Department of Education (DoE) shows that 55.6 percent of the girls enrolled in grade one quit school by the time they reach grade 10, which means that the dropout rate increases as they grow up. The dropout rate in the primary level is below five percent, 5.6 percent in grade six, 5.7 in grade seven, 6.7 in grade eight, 6 percent in grade nine and 7.7 percent in grade 10, according to the report.

Data at the Department of Infrastructure at the DoE show that only 23,862 (79.7 percent) of the 29,100 government schools have toilet facilities. They also show that one toilet in one public school is being used by around 110 students, more than double the number as per government standards. The government standard is 50 students per toilet. The data further reveal that around 35 percent of the schools don’t have separate toilets for girls.

“Our study found out that lack of proper sanitation and hygiene (in schools) is one of the prime factors that leads to high dropout rate and absenteeism among female students,” Deputy Director at the DoE Jhappar Singh Bishwokarma said. “The dropout rate increases as girls reach puberty and start to menstruate. In view of this fact, the government has speeded up plans to construct separate toilets for girls (in schools).”

A study carried out by WaterAid, an NGO, in 2009 showed that lack of adequate toilet facilities, especially during menstruation, discouraged girls from going to school. “As the girls grow, they tend to miss school when they are having their periods, not just because they may be experiencing pain, but also because they find it difficult to use the same toilets used by the boys,” the study said. The WaterAid report added that parents do not encourage girls to go out when they are having their periods, mainly because of these problems.

According to Bishwokarma, the government needs to construct around 30,000 toilets in schools every year to meet the Millennium Development Goal of sanitation and hygiene by 2015. Presently, only around 8,000 toilets are constructed annually. The Ministry has earmarked Rs 500 million for the construction of the toilets this fiscal year. The government has constructed 9,000 toilets in schools since it started building separate ones for girls in 2011.

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