Primary and secondary schools will from tomorrow reopen in the face of floods and delayed release of funds by the government.
Principals have raised the red flag of a financial crisis when schools reopen, saying the learning institutions will struggle to meet their obligations if funds are not released in time.
The ongoing heavy rains have destroyed roads, homes and schools could also also add salt to the injury.
The Kenya Secondary Schools Heads Association (Kessha) says principals are agonising over returning to schools due to lack of funds to run the institutions.
However, Kessha National Chairman Mr Willy Kuria is optimistic that the government will disburse the funds once schools reopen.
Speaking to Sunday Nation in Mombasa during a meeting with principals of national schools, Mr Kuria said the second-term calendar is always packed with many activities.
Mr Kuria said the second-term which is longer than the first and third-terms is largely an academic period because students in form four prepare for their third-term when they will be sitting for their Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education s.
“It is also the term when we will have our Kessha annual conference here in Mombasa so it’s quite a busy term,” he added.
During the Kessha conference, principals meet in Mombasa to deliberate on the issues affecting Kenya's public secondary schools and offer practical solutions to the state.
The Murang’a High School principal said late disbursement of funds is a known challenge across the board. He said schools received capitation a few days before they closed for the April Holidays.
On March 26th, 2024, the government disbursed Sh30.5 billion to cover secondary school education capitation, loans and scholarships for university students.
The funds were released as secondary school principals planned to break for the April holidays a week earlier than the scheduled date due to the financial burden that had affected learning institutions across the country for months.
Education Cabinet Secretary Mr Ezekiel Machogu said Sh7 billion will cater for capitation for public schools at the Junior Secondary School while Sh16 billion cover capitation grants under the Free Day Secondary School education programme.
“The little we got, we used to pay the creditors. Our coffers are empty, we are hoping that by next week, the state will release capitation because we surely have nothing to start,” warned Mr Kuri
The Kessha boss mentioned day schools and special needs schools among education institutions that are always largely hit due to the delayed release of funds. This is because day schools largely rely on capitation, unlike boarding schools where parents are compelled to pay fees.
He said when schools reopen and there is no capitation, the two categories of schools face serious financial challenges.
“This is because the fees imposed by the state for parents to pay for instance for national schools is Sh53,000, extra county about Sh40,000 has remained the same for more than five years yet we are grappling with inflation as a country,” he said.
The association proposed a review of the school fees for boarding schools every two years.
While schools are supposed to receive a capitation of Sh22,244 per learner per annum, however, Mr Kuria revealed that only Sh17,000 hit their accounts.
“Capitation has reduced with Sh5000 per student. If you have 1,000 students this means you have a Sh5 million deficit per year. Some parents are also not paying fees especially after the state warned principals against sending the students home so the balances are pilling,” he added. He said the directive that all students must get their form four certificate whether they have a school fees balance or not is also hurting schools.
“Anytime schools reopen we are always prepared, we must ensure the environment is safe for the children to come back, there is food, teachers are around and we have learning resources,” said Mr Kuria.
However, he fears that the floods could interrupt the reopening of some schools.
National Parents Association, chairman Silas Obuhatsa urged school boards of management to visit their schools ahead of opening to a certain that they are safe for the learners especially in areas like Budalangi and Tana River among many.
