Oky

Context

Menstrual health and hygiene remain critically neglected in many parts of the world due to limited access to accurate information, education, affordable products, and supportive facilities. Deep-rooted stigma and cultural taboos often prevent open conversations, leaving millions of girls and adolescents to begin menstruating without prior knowledge or preparation, leaving them vulnerable to confusion and distress. This affects girls’ mental health, confidence, and school participation, ultimately impacting their educational outcomes and broader social inclusion. With growing numbers of young people turning to the internet for answers to personal health questions, there is a pressing need for accessible, trustworthy digital platforms that provide reliable menstrual health information and support.

Solution

Oky is an education and period tracker digital solution, co-created with and for girls in low and middle income countries. Oky educates girls about their body, puberty and reproductive health in positive, fun and empowering ways, while also allowing them to practise and improve their digital literacy. Unlike other conventional period tracker apps that cater to Western adult women, and may focus on fertility, Oky is a girl-centred, fun, and gamified platform offering age-appropriate, culturally relevant content in local languages. It is entirely free without ads, open-source, accessible online and offline, designed for low connectivity and mobile literacy, and prioritizes user privacy. It uses period and body-positive language and careful cycle prediction, and even has a read-out functionality for girls with lower levels of literacy or vision impairment. It offers quality, evidence-based information about menstruation and sexual and reproductive health, addressing taboos and misconceptions.

Currently deployed in 14+ countries around the world, Oky uses a social franchise business model for scaling. In each new country, Oky is tailored to the local context through collaboration with partners and direct input from girls.

Insights

Oky is a digital menstrual health and SRH education platform designed for adolescent girls in low- and middle-income countries, with over 750,000 online users in 2024. Recognized as a Digital Public Good, it targets marginalized girls, including those out-of-school, displaced, or with disabilities, through inclusive design features like offline access, low-tech formats, and peer education. Evidence from in-app surveys and pilot qualitative research show strong impact: 82–97% of users in global, Indonesia, and Philippines surveys reported improved SRH knowledge and trust in the app; over a third gained awareness of nearby SRH services. Oky also helps adults and educators overcome discomfort discussing SRH topics.

Oky’s franchise model empowers local partners to co-create and adapt content with government and community input, ensuring cultural relevance and sustainability. With UNICEF’s support and experience scaling innovations like U-Report and the Learning Passport, Oky demonstrates strong potential for broader reach and transformative impact on adolescent girls’ health, confidence, and agency.

Analysis

Oky addresses key barriers to menstrual education that disproportionately affect marginalized adolescent girls in low- and middle-income countries. By offering an inclusive, girl-centred digital platform that works offline, in local languages, and on shared devices, Oky overcomes many of these constraints. Its open-source, offline, inclusive and ad-free design ensures equitable access, while its gamified and culturally adapted content increases engagement and retention.

The model is both scalable and replicable. Its social franchise approach allows local partners to adapt the platform while maintaining alignment with Oky’s principles and UNICEF’s oversight. This ensures cultural relevance and community buy-in, even in conservative or resource-constrained settings. Supported by UNICEF’s track record in scaling digital education tools, Oky has strong potential for global replication and meaningful impact on girls’ education and wellbeing.