More than 30 KCSE candidates to miss exams
Education Cabinet Secretary Amina Mohamed with Foreign Affairs Chief Administrative Secretary Ababu Namwamba address journalists after supervising distribution of Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education examinations at the Coast provincial headquarters on November 5, 2018. PHOTO | LABAN WALLOGA | NATION MEDIA GROUP
What you need to know:
- According to Kenya’s Demographic Health Survey, Narok is leading in teenage pregnancies in the country at 46 per cent.
More than 30 Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education candidates in Narok county will not sit for their examinations Monday due to early pregnancies and marriages.
This adds to the number of the over 60 cases of teenage pregnancies witnessed across the county after another 31 failed to sit for the Kenya Certificate of Primary Education (KCPE) examinations, last week.
County Commissioner George Natembeya has termed the trend as catastrophic and ordered quality assurance and standards officers in the region to investigate the cases of pregnancies among school girls.
“How can over 60 girls drop out of school due to pregnancies, others married off before they sit for their examinations. This is like an epidemic!” Said Mr Natembeya.
CHIEFS WARNED
He warned chiefs and their assistants against failing to arrest the culprits, saying they risked losing their jobs.
“Chiefs should be at the forefront of identifying the culprits and reporting them to the police. Those who collaborate with criminals will lose their jobs,” he warned.
The county boss alarm is in tandem with Education Cabinet Secretary Amina Mohamed concerns after nearly 30 pupils gave birth during the KCPE examination.
The cases were spread across the country. Some girls were also rescued while cohabiting with men.
In a statement last week, the CS said the country is facing a crisis.
"If this is an all-year-round phenomenon, we are in an awkward position," she said.
NAROK LEADING
According to Kenya’s Demographic Health Survey, Narok is leading in teenage pregnancies in the country at 46 per cent.
Statistics from the county commissioner’s office indicate that in the last 6 months, 233 school girls from eight secondary and primary schools in the county, aged between 10 and 19 years have been impregnated and forced to discontinue with their learning.
According to a report tabled by Mr Natembeya, Trans Mara West Sub-County is leading with 157 pregnancies followed by Narok East with 30 pregnancy cases reported to the police and respective authorities.
Narok South had 18 cases, Narok North and South 15 each, and Trans Mara East 13 cases.
The county boss said early pregnancies have become a burden to the country but, through joint efforts with security officers, 54 people linked to the cases have been arrested and are facing charges in court.
