Hassan Joho gifts top national exams performers

Mombasa Governor Ali Hassan Joho (front centre) awards top students in last year’s Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) Zainab Nurani (front left) from Memon High School and Abbas Naeem (front right) from Aga Khan Academy with cheques worth Sh500,000 each. [PHOTO: GIDEON MAUNDU/STANDARD]

By JOACKIM BWANA

Mombasa, Kenya: Mombasa County governor Hassan Joho has said devolution is creating opportunities in the county that require citizens with professional papers and expertise.

He urged local pupils and students to work extra hard, saying they can only take advantage of these opportunities if they take their studies seriously and further their education in colleges and universities.

Joho was speaking at the Mombasa Stadium during the governor’s award function titled “Elimu Kwanza, Elimu ya Milele”. The event rewards students, teachers and schools from the county which emerge top in national exams.

Joho urged stakeholders to put in concerted efforts that will ensure the county produces the best students in all future national exams.

“The world has become so competitive and we need to ensure that we are giving our people an edge through good education,” Joho said.

Cash prizes

The governor gave over Sh4 million to the best performing schools, teachers and students who emerged top in last year’s national exams — both KCPE and KCSE.

Zainab Nurani from Memon High School and Abbas Naeem Essagee from Aga Khan Academy in Mombasa, who were among the top ten nationwide students in last year’s KCSE, were each awarded Sh500,000.

The best overall secondary school, Light Academy, took home Sh1 million while Nyali and St Kevin Primary Schools each got Sh500,000.

Best performing teachers in primary and secondary schools from Nyali Primary and Sheikh Khalifa Secondary School were each awarded Sh1 million.

Mombasa Women representative Mishi Mboko gave seven students, who were among the top 100 in the country, Sh100,000 each.

Joho said last year’s improved exam results indicate that the county is now on the right track, adding that the awards are meant to motivate and encourage learners to aim for even better results.

He said with concerted efforts and well laid strategies, the county can perform much better and shine in the education sector.

Joho said even though some aspects of the education sector falls under the national government docket, he was ready to sit down with representatives from the Kenya National Union of Teachers (Knut) and the Kenya Union of Post Primary Teachers (Kuppet) and discuss how they can work together to ensure that both students and teachers are well catered for, for the betterment of Mombasa’s education sector.

 “Teachers sacrifice a lot and put in a lot of effort to ensure that children learn yet their pay is meagre and this sometimes makes it difficult for them to carry out their job effectively and efficiently,” he said.

Mombasa County Executive Secretary for Education and Children Mtana Tendai said it was time all stake holders pushed aside the blame game on bad grades and concentrated on making Mombasa County number one in education.

Tendai said the county government was puting in funds to build more secondary schools and city polytechnics that will cater for the over 70 per cent students who do not have access to secondary and tertiary level education.