State finally releases secondary school funds

By BONIFACE GIKANDI

KENYA: The government has finally released Free Secondary Education tuition funds, even as school administrators described the amount as meagre.

The allocation from the Ministry of Education that was reflected in school bank accounts on Monday indicated that each student was allocated Sh1,627 as clearance fees for last term’s balance.

The ministry further allocated Sh10,265 per student annually.

On Tuesday, secondary school principals from Murang’a County who were interviewed confirmed that they had received the money, but expressed concern over the delay in remittance.

They said the delay had caused inconveniences and even forced schools to send students home over unpaid fees.

Trouble

The principals now want the ministry to urgently release Sh2,053 for this term, to save them trouble.

“The balances for second term have been cleared but we are calling for the speedy release of the remaining funds,” said the Chairman of Murang’a Secondary School Principals Association, Reuben Nyagia Nyagia, who is also the principal of Njumbi Boys High School.

A programme released by the Kenya Secondary School Principals Association indicates that the Ministry of Education is supposed to allocate 50 per cent of the allocation in the first term of the school year, 30 per cent in the second term and the remainder in September.

The ministry’s Public Relations Officer Kennedy Buhere confirmed the release of the funds and promised he would issue details later.

At the same time, primary school heads complained that they were yet to receive funds to support the Free Primary Education from the government.

Last week, the heads, through their chairman Joseph Karuga, urged the government to urgently release the funds to support educational programmes.