Headteachers in Machogu disagree over the Sh11 billion capitation for term 1.
Due to a protracted financial crisis that might potentially cause operational disruptions, secondary schools nationwide today run the risk of losing up to Sh11 billion that was intended to fund institution operations.
This is happening while the Ministry of Education and the tutors read from separate scripts regarding the budgetary situation.
The school heads voiced their dissatisfaction last week, claiming that the Ministry had not only been slow to provide financing for the second term, but had also not provided the entire amount allocated for the first term, amounting to almost Sh11 billion in arrears.
However, Ezekiel Machogu, the cabinet secretary for education, disproved the school leaders on Thursday, stating that elementary and secondary schools had already received the full amount of the first term’s capitation.
“No school is closing because all of our primary and secondary schools have received the 50% capitation,” Machogu stated.
A total of Sh22,244 is provided by the government to each student enrolled in public secondary schools each year.
Funds are disbursed in three installments, with 50% going to the first term, 30% going to the second, and 20% going to the third.
According to head teachers, less than 50% of the funds were received for the first term.
Although secondary schools receive a total funding of Sh22,244, according to the heads, each student should have received Sh11,000 more.
According to a KESSHA document titled Free Secondary Education Capitation, 2024, the Ministry has released Sh8,319.68 for each learner’s first term of education.
Thus, according to the paper, “a balance of Sh2,802.32 is still owing.”
The CS clarified that the 30% designated for the second term is the amount the ministry intended to disburse.
Accordingly, the institutions risk losing the Sh2,802 that each student receives.
With 4.1 million students enrolled in public secondary schools, the country’s roughly 10,000 secondary schools were intended to receive Sh11 billion.
Machogu stated, “We are going to distribute an additional thirty percent for the second term this particular month.”
Speaking at the Kenya School of Government, he oversaw the official launch of the fourth National Education Sector Strategic Plan, which will direct the Ministry’s efforts to ensure that all Kenyans have access to, and get high-quality education and training throughout the course of the following five years.
According to the proposal, the government will require more than Sh4 trillion to fund education over the course of the next five years.
For the past five years, secondary schools have been plagued by underfunding.
The institutions are owed Sh54 billion in capitation arrears, according to a petition that was brought before the National Assembly committee on education in December of last year.
The money was amassed from 2018 until 2023.
Belion Kipsang, the principal secretary for basic education, acknowledged in March that the capitation per pupil for free secondary schooling had been cut from Sh22,224 to Sh17,000.
This indicates that the institutions were getting a capitation payment per learner of Sh5,000 less.
Kipsang stated that even though the allocated budget of Sh65 billion remained the same, the amount was decreased because of the growing number of learners.
He was speaking before the Public Accounts Committee of the National Assembly.
Headteachers in Machogu disagree over the Sh11 billion capitation for term 1.
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