Education takes lion's share of Sh4.8 trillion budget

Treasury Cabinet Secretary John Mbadi. [Boniface Okendo, Standard]

National Treasury has proposed Sh784.5 billion for education in the 2026/27 budget, making it the largest single-sector allocation in the financial year.

Mbadi tabled the proposals before the National Assembly on Thursday, June 11, outlining a wide spread of funds across basic education, universities, technical training, and teacher recruitment.

"Kenya's future depends on developing strong human capital," said Mbadi, adding that the government would strengthen quality learning, promote equity and fortify education against emerging technological and labour market shifts.

The Teachers Service Commission (TSC) has received the largest share at Sh424.3 billion, followed by Sh163.9 billion for higher education, Sh136.6 billion for basic education and Sh58.5 billion for Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET).

Within the basic education envelope, Free Primary Education receives Sh7 billion, Free Day Secondary Education Sh54.6 billion and Junior Secondary School capitation Sh30.7 billion.

The school feeding programme gets Sh3 billion while Sh9.9 billion goes to administering national examinations.

The government has also proposed Sh4.9 billion to convert 20,000 intern teachers to permanent and pensionable terms from January 2027.

A further 24,000 intern teachers will follow in July 2027, with Sh8.2 billion set aside for the intern teacher programme in the interim.

Infrastructure and quality improvement receive Sh4.1 billion for primary and secondary schools, Sh2.1 billion for the construction and equipping of TVET centres, Sh7.1 billion for the Kenya Primary Education Equity in Learning Programme, and Sh4.7 billion for the Kenya Secondary Education Quality Improvement Project.

University and TVET financing gets a substantial injection, with Sh56.3 billion proposed for the Higher Education Loans Board, Sh30.9 billion for university scholarships, and Sh9.2 billion for TVET scholarships.