Secondary schools struggle as government falls short on capitation

Kessha chairman Willie Kuria during their 48th National annual delegates conference at Sheikh Zayed Hall in Mombasa on June 23, 2025. [File, Standard]

The secondary school head teachers have accused the state of failing to release the full capitation thus compromising the standard of education.

The Kenya Secondary School Heads Association (KESSHA) National Chairman Willie Kuria said this year the government has disbursed only Sh14,050 per learner instead of the approved Sh22,244 per student.

The amount excludes Sh2,000 retained by the Ministry of Education to facilitate procurement of textbooks, co-curricular activities, and SMASSE.

Kuria said the head teachers have acknowledged receiving Sh2,890 per student for the third term, which is too little to cover the academic calendar and prepare for KCSE.

Last year, the government, he disclosed, failed to remit Sh22 billion to the schools as the year closed with a Sh 6,560 deficit per learner.

Kuriam who is also the Principal at Murang’a High School, revealed a worrying of government support for the education sector, which has left schools in debt.

He called for a review of the capitation, saying school management faces the challenge of buying food and paying electricity and water bills.

“The capitation was last reviewed in 2017, and 10 years later the cost of education materials and food has skyrocketed. Some school workers are going for months without salaries based on the impact of inflation,” he detailed.

Kuria accused the parliamentarians of sabotaging day secondary school education programmes by inciting parents against paying school fees.

The KESSHA Chairman said in most day schools, the head teachers were experiencing challenges due to insufficient capitation.

“MPs have politicised the day schools to the extent that the parents know the education is free, while their counterparts in the boarding section agreed to add extra money to sustain the well-being of their children,” said Kuria.

He regretted that the incitement has caused schools to perform poorly in the national examinations, thus posting few students to the university.