The Lower Eastern Times Opening The Third Eye
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The Kenya Secondary Schools Association (KESSHA) has urged the government to release capitation funds for the first term to prevent disruptions in learning as students begin the new academic year.
The government is expected to allocate Sh48.4 billion to public primary and secondary schools nationwide for the first term.
Willie Kuria, the KESSHA chairman, speaking in Murang’a, said the delayed disbursement of funds has forced some school administrators to send students home over unpaid fees in order to keep schools operational.
“A key issue is that schools did not receive the full capitation last term; there was an outstanding balance of Sh7,000 per student out of the expected Sh22,000. This money was never provided, leaving schools with debt, including unpaid salaries,” Kuria explained.
Each student in a public secondary school is entitled to an annual capitation grant of Sh22,244, as part of the government’s Free Day Secondary Education (FDSE) program, introduced in 2007 to help students from disadvantaged backgrounds attend secondary school.
The grant is distributed in three payments: 50% in the first term, 30% in the second, and 20% in the third term.
“We began this term expecting the funds to be in the bank, but as of now, no capitation has been received by schools,” Kuria added.
Students in both primary and secondary schools began reporting for the first term of the 2025 academic year on January 6.
In a statement on January 4, Education CS Julius Ogamba assured that first-term capitation would be disbursed on time to avoid the recurring financial challenges schools have faced.
However, in a turn of events, National Treasury CS John Mbadi stated that the earliest schools could expect the funds would be January 31.
Mbadi explained in an interview on January 8 that the government’s priorities for this year included repaying loans, disbursing capitation to schools, paying salaries, and releasing the December county revenue share. His ministry is working with the Education Ministry to ensure the funds are available by the end of the month.
Mbadi urged schools to remain patient, stressing that learning could continue even without the funds being released immediately.
This means school leaders will have to find other ways to keep schools operational until the funds are transferred.
