Education Cabinet Secretary (CS) Julius Ogamba has said the government has already disbursed Ksh19 billion to public schools as capitation.
The CS, who appeared before Senate on Thursday, said the allocation was part of Ksh30 billion allocated for primary and secondary schools in the financial years 2023,2024 and 2025.
Ogamba said Ksh13,385,331,614 was allocated to Free Junior Day School in the financial year 2022/2023, but Ksh13,385,252,144 was disbursed while in the financial year 2023/2024, Ksh31 billion was budgeted for and Ksh30,469,542,115 was disbursed.
In the financial year 2024/2025 Ksh30,660,000,000 was budgeted for and Ksh6,109, 654, 633.94 has already been disbursed.
He confirmed that in the last five years, the funds provided to the Ministry of Education have fallen short of the approved rate, leading to underfunding of schools and forcing the ministry to divide the available amount by the number of learners.
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Addressing Senator Boni Khalwale’s (Kakamega) concerns about capitation grants for the 2023 and 2024 academic years, Ogamba confirmed that the learner grants as per the revised rates were: Ksh1,420 annually for primary learners, Ksh15,042 for Junior Secondary and Ksh22,244 for Free Day Secondary Education.
He clarified that the disbursements have been adjusted to be released on a termly schedule, aiming for smoother school operations by following a 50:30:20 split across school terms.
He assured that the ministry, with the support of the World Bank and the Global Partnership for Education, is “taking all necessary steps to prepare for the upcoming academic changes.”
Phase one which commenced in August, comprising 3,500 classrooms at a Ksh3.5 billion investment, has been completed. A further 7,500 classrooms are in progress, costing KES 7.5 billion, with completion expected by December this year.
Ogamba highlighted additional KES 3.4 billion allocations to the NG-CDF for constructing 6,800 classrooms, a venture that promises to match funding with local contributions.
The CS outlined a roadmap that identified 16,000 new classrooms as essential for accommodating incoming Grade 9 students.
He also confirmed that 36,504 teachers had been promoted following an extensive recruitment process involving 149,849 applicants. He stressed that the promotions adhered to legal requirements for regional and ethnic balance.
The CS explained that the ministry applies set guidelines prioritizing qualifications, regional equity and gender diversity in the selection process.
By Obegi Malack
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