Pain for parents as Treasury says Gov't cannot afford free education anymore

The government is admitting it can no longer fully fund free education in public primary and secondary schools.

Treasury Cabinet Secretary John Mbadi says the financial burden is too heavy for the State to sustain, forcing a cut in capitation funding.

Appearing before the National Assembly Committee on Education on Thursday, Mbadi said the government cannot sustain the full capitation of Ksh.22,000 per secondary school student, managing only Ksh.16,600.

This development could push parents to dig deeper into their pockets at a time when the education sector is already in the depths of controversy—from ghost school scandals to unpaid debts, among other challenges.

“If you look at the total budget for the year and divide it by the number of total students, you will see that instead of Ksh.22,000, we are funding about Ksh.16,000. And so we release 50%, 30%, then 20%. As to whether it is enough, it is not,” said Mbadi.

This means parents will now have to shoulder more of the cost of their children’s education, sparking concern among MPs, who are now demanding honesty from both the Education and Treasury ministries.

This comes just days after the Auditor General revealed that public funds were paid to non-existent schools last year. Education Cabinet Secretary Migos Ogamba was on the receiving end.

“Ghost schools have received money that wasn’t approved by this committee,” said Luanda MP Dick Maungu.

Teso South MP Mary Emasse added, “We need a response on the ghost schools. We have serious concerns with what has been presented.”

Igembe North MP Julius Taitumu, on his part, said, “You have directors in the ministry—how can ghost schools just get money just like that?”

In his response, CS Ogamba said, “If money went to schools that do not exist, that is a criminal offence. Nobody can defend that. If it happened, the matter will be handed over to the DCI.”

The education committee also cast doubt on the effectiveness of the new Kenya Education Management Information System (KEMIS), saying many students remain unregistered and are therefore missing out on capitation funds.

“Many students are not receiving capitation according to actual enrollment because of KEMIS. And TVETs alone are carrying a Ksh.12.5 billion,” noted Baringo North MP, Joseph Makilap.

CS Ogamba added, “The ministry is currently developing the system to ensure efficiency.”

Even as the state of capitation is in limbo and parents stare at more costs, the Ministry of Education says it plans to employ up to 24,000 intern teachers in this financial year.