MPs want KICD to explain uneven supply of textbooks to schools

Members of the National Assembly want the Kenya Institute of Curriculum Development (KICD) to explain the status of distribution of textbooks to public secondary schools.

The resolution was made after the National Assembly Public Investments Committee on Governance and Education said there are discrepancies in distribution, noting that it has established cases where schools received books beyond their requirements, while other institutions, particularly those in marginalised and far-flung areas, continued to face shortages.

The committee, chaired by Luanda MP Dick Maungu, said it had established this when they examined Auditor-General’s reports covering the Financial Year 2020/21 to 2024/25 for several national schools.

Maungu said the committee had identified significant discrepancies between the number of textbooks supplied to some schools and the number of learners requiring them, wondering whether the distribution system was being guided by accurate and up-to-date enrolment data.

“We have seen a school that received like 400 and 506 extra books. The question is, when you receive extra numbers, does it mean there is a school somewhere that does not have books?” Maungu posed.

The committee said it will require KICD officials to explain the criteria used to determine the number of textbooks allocated to individual schools and how the institute ensures supplies correspond with current enrolment and subject requirements.

KICD will be expected to explain the distribution system, including how enrolment data, subject requirements, curriculum changes and existing stock at individual schools are taken into account.

On the other hand, KICD’s explanation will help the committee establish whether the discrepancies arise from inaccurate enrolment data, weaknesses in procurement and distribution, changes in curriculum requirements or inadequate coordination between the Ministry, KICD and individual schools.

Among the schools whose principals and senior managers appeared before the committee were Maseno School, Ng’iya Girls High School, Bunyore Girls High School, Maranda Boys High School, Kisumu Girls High School, Chavakali High School, Kanga High School, Orero Boys High School, Asumbi Girls High School, Nyabururu Girls High School, Homa Bay High School and Kisii School.

According to Maungu, the Government should ensure learning materials get to schools according to their needs, especially for institutions in areas that have historically faced resource constraints.

“We expect KICD to have the right data to ensure books supplied are enough for in specific institutions, so that those in far-flung areas like Mandera, Turkana and other places can also get what is supposed to be theirs,” he said.

For Our Lady of Lourdes Nyabururu Girls National School in Kisii County, the Auditor-General stated that KICD had distributed 7,260 textbooks during the financial year ended June 2025, while records showed that 5,048 had been issued to students.

The audit thus reported an excess stock of 2,162 books, while also noting that the school did not have sufficient books for some of the subjects it offered.

But Chief Principal Dr Joyce Orioki said the additional books were being put to use, particularly for revision and borrowing, insisting that the school’s enrolment had grown, making the surplus less significant than suggested by the audit records.

“Yes, there were excess books, but the enrolment at the time was far less than what the school stands at now, and the books are relevant and are being used across the classes for revision and borrowing,” Dr Orioki explained.

She said the school has had a substantial increase in enrolment, with the intake rising from about 600 students in 2021 to about 1,100 in 2023.

“That is like a double intake and therefore all the books are in use,” she said.

For supply of textbooks to Asumbi Girls High, the auditor’s report for the year ended June 2024 showed that KICD had distributed 20,800 textbooks to the school, while 15,476 were issued to students.

At the same time, the report identified shortages under several titles and raised concerns over books supplied for subjects that were no longer on the syllabus.

The audit noted that the school had received copies like Parliament of Owls and An Artist of the Floating World, despite the two set books no longer being part of the syllabus at the time.

The report questioned whether public funds allocated for the procurement of the books had been used effectively.

Asumbi Girls principal Linet Pino Sati told the committee that the school has been providing information on its textbook requirements through the National Education Management Information System (NEMIS), but was not involved in the actual procurement and distribution process.

“The Ministry of Education did not involve the school when procuring textbooks, though the management has been remitting subject requirements per learner in NEMIS,” Sati said.

“The management is considering getting in touch with the Ministry of Education regularly to advise on the required number of textbooks,” she added.

She also stated that books supplied to the school were treated as public resources and could not simply be handed over to another institution without proper documentation.

“The textbooks that you receive in school are like money. You cannot just receive them and give them directly. As students come to us for books, we give them. We have written agreements so that when the Auditor comes, they look at the list you are given and they want to see which students were issued books,” she explained.

But Kiminini MP Maurice Kakai Bisau wanted to know why school managers accepted books they knew were obsolete and why schools holding excess textbooks could not facilitate their redistribution to institutions facing shortages.

“Why should you receive obsolete books? If you knew the books were obsolete, why do you receive them? Isn't there a mechanism when you receive excess books, you also redistribute for those who don't have” Bisau wondered.

He insisted that public resources should be used to benefit learners across the country and urged school managers to consider the needs of neighbouring institutions when they have excess learning materials.

At Kisii School, the Auditor-General also raised concerns over the management and distribution of textbooks.

The audit report for the year ended June 2023 found that there was no evidence of an instructional needs assessment to guide the determination of the number and subjects of learning materials required by the school.

The audit also reported that KICD had supplied 5,324 textbooks under four titles, against 5,056 books issued to students, leaving an unexplained excess of 268 books in the school store.

At the same time, the Auditor-General reported a shortfall of 2,276 textbooks between the quantities indicated in KICD and Jomo Kenyatta Foundation distribution lists and the books reflected in signed delivery notes.

The audit said the shortfall constituted a breach of contract and meant that students did not benefit from the books that had not been delivered.

A subsequent audit for the year ended June 2025 raised further concerns after Kisii School received 202 Grade 10 textbooks despite not having Grade 10 students enrolled during the period under review.

The audit showed that the books were still in the school store when they were physically verified in March 2026.

Other issues raised by the Auditor-General surrounded school’s controls over the receipt and movement of textbooks, including the absence of written requests specifying the type and quantity of books required and weaknesses in inspection and acceptance procedures.

Kisii School principal Fred Mogaka said the books were supplied by the Ministry of Education through KICD and that schools are normally not consulted directly before supplies were made.

He said the Grade 10 books had been supplied in anticipation of the admission of Grade 10 learners.

“The textbooks are being supplied by the Ministry of Education through KICD and they normally don't consult schools on supplies,” Mogaka said.