As women in the Channel Islands cry out for support, a quiet revolution is brewing in Kenya's corporate corridors to break the taboo of the "change".

"I thought I was losing my mind. I cried because I couldn't find my slippers." These are the words of Dani Barnett in Guernsey, Channel Islands, but they could easily belong to Wanjiku in Westlands or Amina in Mombasa. A new report from the BBC highlighting the lack of menopause support in the UK has resonated globally, exposing a universal failure to support women during a critical biological transition. But while the West grapples with the issue, Kenya is surprisingly taking bold, if tentative, steps to lead the conversation.

The Global Struggle

The BBC report paints a grim picture: women suffering severe anxiety, brain fog, and physical pain, yet feeling "invisible" to their doctors and employers. In the Channel Islands, women like Trudi Roscouet are campaigning for health services to prioritize menopause, calling it a "forgotten" area of public health.

Kenya's Corporate Awakening

In Nairobi, the silence is breaking. Leading the charge is Standard Chartered Bank Kenya, which has become one of the first employers on the continent to introduce a comprehensive menopause policy. [...](asc_slot://start-slot-11)Their framework includes:

• Medical Cover: Insurance that explicitly covers hormone replacement therapy (HRT) and counseling.
• Flexible Working: Options to work from home during severe symptom flare-ups.
• "Menopause Corners": Safe spaces and support groups within the office.

This is not just corporate social responsibility; it is economic pragmatism. "When organizations support their people, they gain loyalty," says Evans Munyori, the bank's Head of HR. With 75% of women experiencing symptoms that affect their work, ignoring menopause is a recipe for losing seasoned female talent at the peak of their careers.

Breaking the Cultural Taboo

The challenge in East Africa remains cultural. As one activist noted, "In Swahili, there isn't even a polite word for menopause." Projects like Feminists in Kenya are working to change this, holding intergenerational summits in Kilifi and Kisumu to debunk myths. The message from St Peter Port to Nairobi is unified: Menopause is not an illness to be cured, but a life stage to be supported. The silence is over.