1 Million Students To Miss 2024 Capitation, PS Kipsang Reveals
Next year, more than one million secondary school students could fail to be considered for government capitation. Basic Education PS Belio Kipsang attributes this to the Ksh. 22 billion reduction in financing allocated for the Free Day Secondary School Capitation in the supplementary budget for the financial year 2023-2024.
The surge of up to two hundred thousand KCPE candidates this year presented an immense challenge for the PS to explain. Using this as justification, he made an effort to persuade the Julius Melly-led National Assembly Education Committee that his department needed more money for the construction of secondary school infrastructure.
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The committee, seemingly unconvinced by the PSs’s attempt to justify their request for additional funding for secondary school infrastructure development with this influx, accused the Ministry of Education of poor planning.
PS Kipsang also informed the Julius Melly-chaired committee that, due to budget cuts, the ministry might not be able to pay capitation for one million secondary school students.
“In this particular year we shall not be able to finance 1 million learners on the free day secondary school,” said Kipsang.
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The supplementary estimates have resulted in an augmentation of the budgetary allocation for the State Department of Basic Education from Ksh. 147.8 billion to Ksh. 156.7 billion.
In a notable allocation, an additional Ksh. 8.9 billion has been allocated, which includes Ksh. 5.5 billion for the provision of capitation to JSS learners and Ksh. 3.8 billion for school examinations and assessments.
Additionally, the Ministry of Education expressed dissatisfaction over the Ksh.4 billion reduction in funding designated for the Capitation of TVETs.
And as the education reform train acquires momentum, officials in the field of education insist that sufficient funding for the sector is essential for its successful completion.
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1 Million Students To Miss 2024 Capitation, PS Kipsang Reveals
