Ministry withholds Sh54 Billion as Schools Struggle with Debt, Teacher Protests
New revelations regarding funding deficits in secondary education have surfaced, resulting in the misappropriation of billions of funds intended for public institutions.
According to school administrators, the National Treasury has retained billions of shillings intended for learners’ capitation for the past five years, citing financial constraints.
The Treasury has retained almost Sh5,000, depriving schools of the Sh22,244 capitation per learner for the past five years.
Additionally, the Ministry of Education has been withholding approximately Sh1,979 per child, thereby reducing the annual budget for public school students.
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In the end, the government allocates a mere Sh15,479 to schools, and they must earmark an extra Sh5,000 for infrastructure funding.
The petition submitted to parliament by the Kenya Secondary Schools Heads (Kessha) contains the pertinent information.
According to the petition, schools must allocate Sh5,000 to the infrastructure fund once they receive the disbursement from the ministry. As a result, secondary schools are left with an average of Sh10,479.37 per child for covering their operational expenses.
Secondary school administrators collectively assert that the government owes them Sh54 billion, which disrupts the efficient operation of schools and the remuneration of suppliers.
The disclosures happen within the context of the Ministry’s announcement in September that it had remitted all outstanding funds to schools.
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Last month, Ezekiel Machogu, the cabinet secretary for education, declared that the government had repaid all capitation funds owed to schools.
Machogu disclosed that the Ministry of Education had received Sh16 billion in capitation funds from The National Treasury, with the intention of disbursing it to students in public Primary, Junior, and Secondary Schools, ensuring the seamless functioning of all school activities.
Thursday, however, the Kenya Secondary Schools Heads (Kessha) submitted a petition to parliament that portrays a bleak picture.
The petition, dated October 31, addresses the Clerk of the National Assembly and is sent to the Speakers of the Senate and the National Assembly, namely Moses Wetangula and Amason Kingi.
In light of the financial difficulties faced by educational institutions, the administrators disclosed that the ministry has disbursed an average of Sh17,458 per child over the last five years.
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According to the report, the government failed to allocate Sh3,167,804,931 of the total capitation to secondary institutions in 2019.
The breakdown of disbursements in the heads’ report indicates that the government disbursed Sh11,122 per child, or half of the Sh22,244, during the first term of 2019.
Schools received 14.91 percent as opposed to the intended 30 percent during the second term, which equates to Sh3,315.62 per pupil.
However, for the third term, disbursements amounted to 30%, or Sh6,679.31.
In aggregate, schools obtained 94.94 percent of the overall capitation, resulting in a 5.06 percent shortfall.
Furthermore, the heads assert that this equates to a sum of Sh3.2 billion that should have been earmarked for the schools.
However, this commenced a chaotic financial situation that persisted for the subsequent five years, resulting in a continuous exchange of accusations between educational administrators and the government.
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An additional factor that exacerbated the financial crisis was a modification to the disbursement strategy, which implemented a fiscal year formula in lieu of the prior school calendar model.
According to administrators, this subsequently widened the funding disparity.
During the fiscal year 2020/2021, schools failed to receive Sh16,982,119,448; this equates to an approximate deficit of Sh5,000 per student on average.
During the 2021/2022 fiscal year, schools received a debt of Sh15,968,967,196, which equates to an approximate withholding of Sh4,451 per student.
However, the fiscal year 2022/2023 witnessed the most substantial deficit as the total amount owed skyrocketed to Sh18,101,294,280, which meant approximately Sh4,905 per child remained unpaid to the educational institutions.
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The total value of the report, as submitted by the secondary school directors, is Sh54.2 billion.
The report clarifies that the funding predicament started in 2018 when the National Treasury held back a portion of capitation funds earmarked for schools.
The National Treasury, it was disclosed, only disbursed Sh17,458 out of the intended Sh22,244 per student, citing insufficient funds.
As outlined in the report, the Ministry of Education only reimburses schools with a mere Sh15,479, retaining Sh1,978 per pupil to cover expenses like school medical cover, textbooks, co-curricular activities, and SMASSE.
Following the transfer of funds to schools, the report states that an additional Sh5,000 per student is allocated for infrastructure development.
As a result, the remaining amount per child for operational expenses in public institutions amounts to Sh10,479.37.
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Machogu, appearing before the Education Committee of the National Assembly on Wednesday, stated that the fixed allocation to the ministry despite the growing student population has caused the current predicament, which he further noted could exacerbate with the anticipated surge in enrolments the following year.
Machogu stated that the present number of students enrolled in secondary schools is 3.9 million, whereas the budget for this fiscal year is only Sh65 billion.
According to him, this quantity falls short of the approved Sh22,240 per student, resulting in a Sh22 billion funding shortfall.
“Next year, we project that the enrollment will be 4.2 million learners. If the funding remains as it is, the capitation will reduce to Sh15,476 per learner,” said Machogu.
The disclosure of the public school financing crisis occurred weeks after a public dispute between secondary school administrators and the ministry regarding funds for free education.
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Additionally, teachers’ unions intervened, criticizing the ministry for delayed disbursements and the concealment of funds intended for educational institutions.
According to the school administrators, financial difficulties have forced institutions to terminate the employment of educators supported by their boards of management (BoM), causing a decline in educational quality.
The petition states, “Due to financial constraints, a number of schools are unable to provide the necessary resources for conducting practical lessons, particularly in the sciences.”
In addition, they contend that insufficient funding has restricted students’ access to clubs, athletics, the arts, modern agriculture, and other organizations that enhance their academic experiences and offer career prospects in those fields.
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In their recommendation, school administrators are now requesting the lifting of the directive that withholds infrastructure funds from capitation.
The petition states that a combination of underfunding, accumulated deficits, and the necessity to maintain an infrastructure fund not available for day-to-day school operations is causing schools to grapple with significant financial challenges.
Additionally, school administrators require a capitation assessment every three years to account for inflation.
They seek a revision of boarding and dining fees to consider inflation.
Furthermore, they advocate for compelling secondary school students with outstanding fees to make the required payments.
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The petition asserts that the Ministry of Education should guide schools on how to handle situations in which Form 4 students leave with unpaid fee balances. Currently, schools are prohibited from withholding Form 4 certificates as a method to ensure the collection of unpaid fees.
Ministry withholds Sh54 Billion as Schools Struggle with Debt, Teacher Protests