Education Ministry Seeks MPs’ Backing on Hardship Area Harmonization.
The Ministry of Education is lobbying Members of Parliament to support efforts to harmonize the classification of hardship areas across all government sectors.
Cabinet Secretary Julius Migos acknowledged that the current framework for determining eligibility for hardship allowances is discriminatory, and emphasized the government’s commitment to rectifying the system to ensure fairness for all affected public servants.
Speaking during the handover of a school bus funded through the National Government Constituencies Development Fund (NGCDF) at a comprehensive school in Lyia County, Migos reassured teachers that the ministry would work to safeguard their entitled allowances.
His remarks came as reports emerged that the government was preparing to implement a plan that would eliminate 129 sub-counties from the list of hardship areas. If implemented, this move could result in civil servants collectively losing up to Ksh6 billion in hardship allowances.
Teachers working in officially designated hardship areas, through their welfare association, have filed a case in court aiming to block the enforcement of recommendations made in a 2019 inter-agency technical committee report.
The educators have challenged the proposed changes, citing a lack of scientific evaluation and public participation during the reclassification process. They are now turning to parliamentarians for support to halt the initiative.
Read Also: Government to Revisit Hardship Allowance Policy Following Uproar
CS Migos urged legislators to back the ministry’s efforts in aligning hardship area classification across all government ministries. He emphasized that a region deemed a hardship zone by one ministry should be recognized as such by others, advocating for unified and affirmative action.
He also pointed out that some counties, including those with active school feeding programs, still have a significant portion of their populations unregistered, underscoring the need for continued government support in such areas.
Education Ministry Seeks MPs’ Backing on Hardship Area Harmonization.
