Lobbying begins as KICD searches for new boss

A vicious battle for the position of the Kenya Institute of Curriculum Development chief executive has emerged, delaying the hiring of a substantive head two months after the post was declared vacant.

Though Dr Joel Mabonga has been named acting CEO to replace Dr Julius Jwan, who was appointed principal secretary in the Education ministry, delays in the recruitment could have huge and negative implications on the ongoing implementation of the Competency-Based Curriculum.

“Since Dr Jwan was moved to Technical and Vocational Education and Training as PS, no advert has ben put out in the media announcing the vacancy and setting the stage for hiring.

Instead, senior Education ministry officials are busy trying to lobby for a candidate who they can trust to help them achieve their selfish interests. KICD is at the centre of the whole of Kenya’s education system, especially because of the CBC, so there is a lot of money and influence right there,” said a senior education official based at Jogoo House who declined to be named for discussing a matter he considers sensitive.

ONLINE LEARNING

KICD chairperson Sarah Ruto, however, says that though she is not aware of any lobbying, she is confident whoever will be picked will have to go through a competitive hiring process and will have to be exceptional.

“Lobbying is not necessarily a bad thing. I would encourage it so that we expand the pool from which to pick the right candidate. We have laid out clear and concrete hiring guidelines and everything is on course. What I can assure the public and education stakeholders in general is that we will choose a top quality leader in the end,” she says.

Dr Ruto explains that the recruitment process has only been put on hold because of the Covid-19 pandemic, "which has dramatically changed the way we work."

“Rather than concentrate on hiring a CEO, we thought it more appropriate to prioritise online learning through television and radio in order to keep learning going when the schools are shut. After all, we have an acting CEO who has a six-month mandate and a council which is working in top gear,” she says.

One of the more urgent tasks that has been put in limbo partly because of the Covid-19 pandemic (which has claimed 22 Kenyans and infected 435), but principally because KICD lacks a substantive head, is the vetting for Grade Five books.

BOOK VETTING

The institute had asked publishers to submit Grade Five materials by April 6 for vetting, but this was put off indefinitely in March following the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic.

KICD seems to have realised the urgency of the matter and on Wednesday asked publishers to submit the Grade 5 instructional materials by May 18.

A further delay would have caused a backlog in the development of the CBC material as the curriculum developer looks to release the curriculum designs for Grade 6, the last Grade in the primary cycle.

The suspension of the submissions had threatened the distribution of more than 18 million books in September and the institute would run the risk of approving books, which have been hurriedly evaluated and whose quality could be heavily compromised.

The quality of instructional materials has been a sticky issue for the institute, which has recently been forced to come out and disown substandard or inappropriate books in the market.

Besides the publication of the materials, which must be of high quality, age-appropriate and format-perfect, the books must go through a long and intensive vetting process by the institute.

Unlike before, the price component has become crucial for publishers when submitting their books for approval.

IN-TRAY

KICD is the agency tasked with procuring books worth billions of shillings every year for state schools and expensive books, no matter how good, are frowned upon.

It is in the multibillion-shilling central procurement that was started by former Education minister Fred Matiang’i that integrity issues have been raised.

Getting just one title on the government list means assured huge sales and missing out completely can sound a death knell, especially for the small publishers.

Still on the CEO’s in-tray, the institute is supposed to work closely with the Teachers Service Commission in the training of teachers for Grade Five with only six months to go before CBC enters the grade.

In addition, the institute must coordinate the alignment of teacher training in colleges and universities to the new CBC requirements.

Without a substantive CEO to oversee these activities, KICD is only the second major agency in the ministry without a substantive head whose head after the Kenya National Examinations Council, which has been headed by Mercy Karogo in an acting capacity since 2016.

Additional reporting by David Muchunguh