Schools to reopen on Monday

Education Secretary Jacob Kaimenyi has ordered that all public schools be reopened on Monday.

Teachers were subsequently told to report to their respective schools the same day.

Prof Kaimenyi also announced he would be meeting education stakeholders to decide if the Second Term can be extended to recover the lost time. The strike was called by the Kenya National Union of Teachers (Knut) to press the government to pay Sh47 billion in allowances under a 1997 agreement.

They ended the boycott on Wednesday evening after accepting a Sh16.1 billion offer spread in two years.

That would mean the lowest paid teacher would receive a commuter allowance of Sh4,000 from the current Sh1,001.

Earlier, Knut had declined the offer after the government said it would pay in three phases.

Teachers Service Commission boss Gabriel Lengoiboni said the new deal had brought on board a new allowance – reading allowance – for teachers working in schools for visually impaired students. They will each earn an extra Sh15,000 per month.

Kuppet had called off its strike last week after negotiations with the TSC.

When announcing the reopening of schools on Friday, Prof Kaimenyi said the government would do all within its power to ensure smooth learning. Candidates in public schools had expressed their concern over the disruption of the learning.

Prof Kaimenyi had earlier said there would be no change to the national examinations calendar. But on Friday, he appeared to leave open the possibility of extending the term.

“The teachers’ strike disrupted learning for three weeks... We will hold a meeting to address the matter expeditiously.”

No disruptions

He said the government was committed to ensuring that there were no further disruptions to the school calendar.

Knut called off the strike after their officials met Deputy President William Ruto on Wednesday.

On the same day, the Education Secretary ordered the closure of all public schools.