Schools heads have been warned over sending students home for fees after government directive on admitting Grade 10 learners.
This comes as principals raise concerns of mounting financial pressure as shrinking external support, rising enrolment and delayed fee payments threaten to lock thousands of learners out of classrooms.
Even as the government insists that capitation funds have been released, education officials warn that strained institutions must not pass the burden to learners.
Education Cabinet Secretary Julius Ogamba has cautioned school heads against sending learners away over unpaid fees, arguing that public schools must accommodate vulnerable students as financing reforms take shape.
“The government has released capitation to schools. If we have admitted 700 students and you have four or five who have not paid fees, they cannot make it impossible for you to run the school,” Ogamba said.
His remarks come amid reports that some schools, particularly senior schools adjusting to the new Grade 10 intake, are struggling to balance operational costs while retaining learners from low-income households.
Ogamba acknowledged that the transition to the new system has created temporary imbalances in enrolment and space utilisation, especially in schools that do not yet have Grade 10 learners.
“Those without Grade 10 also do not have Form Two, they only have Form Three and Four. Working with TSC we will rationalise the space which we are doing and we have extended the final week for Grade 10 intake,” he said. “The final data will inform on the schools… We do the 50 per cent which is more and we will rationalise in the second term.”
The CS issued a stern warning to principals who defy government directives by sending learners home due to fees or lack of uniform.
“We call upon our principals to support the government. Working with the TSC through their field officers, should we find any principal who will have turned a child away for not having school fees or uniforms, action will be taken through the employer, including dismissal,” Ogamba said.
Beyond school-level challenges, Ogamba painted a broader picture of an education sector under global and domestic strain.
Speaking during “Investing in our Future: Development Partners Roundtable on Education Financing”, he noted that official development assistance from traditional partners has declined sharply in recent years, even as enrolment across all education levels continues to rise.
“These two developments have resulted in increased pressure on the limited available resources,” he said, noting that Kenya already spends nearly 30 per cent of its total national budget on education, yet still faces funding deficits.
Despite the strain, Ogamba defended sustained investment in education as essential for inclusive growth, social cohesion and resilience.
He cited Kenya’s long-standing partnership with the Global Partnership for Education (GPE), which has helped deliver grants to over 4,200 schools, scholarships to more than 20,000 vulnerable learners and the construction of over 23,000 classrooms to support the transition to the Competency-Based Education system.
Ogamba stressed that continued donor support remains critical but urged a shift towards sustainable solutions.
“We must mobilise additional resources, innovate domestic financing and ensure value for money,” he said, adding that reforms such as the Kenya Education Management Information System aim to strengthen transparency and data-driven decision-making.
