Treasury won’t pay pending capitation funds to schools, says Mbadi

The government will not pay more than Sh64 billion that has accumulated over the years as unremitted capitation funds to public schools. Cabinet Secretary for the National Treasury and Economic Planning, John Mbadi, said that there is no provision in the budget to pay money that was allocated but not released once a financial year has ended.

Heads of primary and secondary schools have been asking the government to release the balance of capitation funds that have not been disbursed, as financial support to schools continues to decline despite increasing enrollment.

As a result, they argue that the operation of schools has been severely affected, with some institutions running into debt and being sued by suppliers.

“It was budgeted for, but our budget is cash-based. If a financial year has ended and you didn’t pay it, there’s no money. We don’t keep money somewhere. Who do we pay that money to if the capitation was not released?” Mr. Mbadi questioned during an interview on a local radio station yesterday.

He acknowledged that in some instances, parents are asked to pay higher school fees than recommended when the government fails to disburse the capitation funds in full.

Many schools are unable to purchase adequate learning materials, pay non-teaching staff, or provide quality meals for students due to reduced capitation funding.

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Co-curricular activities have also been affected, leading schools to cut back on sports and extracurricular programs because of the lack of funds. Currently, the official capitation per learner under the Free Primary Education program is Sh1,420 per learner per year, while those in junior secondary schools are entitled to Sh15,042. The Free Day Secondary Education program provides for Sh22,244 per learner annually, though this has been reduced to about Sh15,000 per year.

“If parents were forced to pay to cover the deficit) and then we give schools that money, will they refund the parents? Moving forward, let’s ensure all the money budgeted for is released,” Mbadi said.

“We were supposed to give schools money… we didn’t supply it, but we don’t have a budget for that. You can’t cover arrears that were supposed to be paid to schools in 2020,” he added.

The CS mentioned that the government has released the funds due to primary and junior schools for the first term. He noted that secondary schools have a deficit of Sh14 billion, which he said will be disbursed before the end of the term. Mbadi indicated that public universities require Sh107 billion per year.

“We had Sh48.8 billion allocated for capitation to schools. Out of this, Sh4.5 billion was for Free Primary Education (FPE) for the first term, which we paid in full; Sh15.1 billion for Junior Secondary Schools (JSS), which we also paid in full. For secondary schools, we allocated Sh28 billion, of which we paid Sh14 billion, and since the term hasn’t ended, we’ll ensure the rest is paid,” he explained.

Earlier this month, principals of secondary schools submitted a proposal to the Ministry of Education that, if adopted, would require parents to contribute more to keep their children in school. The Kenya Secondary Schools Heads Association (KESSHA) has stated that the capitation, last reviewed in 2018, has not only been reduced but also fails to account for inflation over the years.

In the new proposal, principals want parents with children in national schools to pay an additional Sh19,628 annually. Fees for those in extra-county schools would increase by Sh27,488. Learners in day schools currently pay tuition fees, but KESSHA is now proposing they pay Sh5,372 yearly.

By Joseph Mambili