Rédaction Africa Links 24 with Daily Nation
Published on 2024-02-01 21:00:00
Many young people from poor families in Kenya work hard and excel in the Kenya Certificate of Primary Education (KCPE) examination, only to find themselves facing a difficult situation when it comes to accessing secondary education. The high fees for secondary education are a challenge for the majority of poor parents, despite the availability of bursaries and scholarships issued by the county and national governments, as well as private organizations.
Access to quality education is a constitutional right that should be enjoyed by all children, but it is not easily accessible for many. Some extremely needy children are blatantly denied this vital right. As a result, poor parents struggle to enable their bright children to pursue their dreams of acquiring an education and securing their future.
One positive government policy is the 100 per cent transition for students from primary to secondary school. Thanks to this policy, nearly all candidates end up getting a Form Four education. With this basic training and knowledge, those who do not excel academically can be trained in employable skills or for self-employment.
The free and compulsory basic education programme, introduced during President Mwai Kibaki’s tenure in 2003 and anchored in the 2010 Constitution, has been praised. However, there is growing evidence of the shortcomings of the country’s much-touted free education. The country needs a skilled workforce to effectively drive its economy, and education is the means to equip the human resource with the necessary knowledge and skills.
The total cost of education for one year is Sh75,798, but the government only pays Sh22,244 for tuition under the Free Day Secondary Education (FDSE) program. This leaves poor parents with the daunting task of raising the boarding fees and catering for other basic needs. As a result, some stakeholders feel that national and better county schools have become the preserve of the rich. There is a general consensus that the government should allocate more funds to education in order to enable more students to access this constitutional right.
In conclusion, the high fees for secondary education in Kenya pose a significant barrier for many young people from poor families, despite the availability of bursaries and scholarships. While the government has implemented some positive policies to support education, there is a need for increased funding to ensure that all children have access to quality education as a constitutional right.
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