Parliamentary Committee Recieves Education Budget Allocations and Priorities
The Principal Secretary (PS) of Education, Belio Kipsang, appeared before the parliamentary committee on education to present the proposed budget for the financial year 2023/24 as specified in Executive Order number one of 2023.
The committee’s objective is to assess and implement various activities and projects within the education system, including Primary Education, Secondary Education, Quality Assurance and Standards, as well as General Administration, Planning, and Support services.
During the committee meeting in Nairobi, the PS announced that the proposed budget for FY 2023/24 allocates a total of Ksh.135.480 billion.
Of this amount, Ksh.115.773 billion is allocated for Recurrent and Development expenditure, while Ksh.19.707 billion is allocated for Development.
The recurrent budget has increased by Ksh.9.089 billion compared to the previous fiscal year (2022/23), which had a budget of Ksh.106.684 billion.
The primary areas of focus in the proposed budget include the allocation of Ksh.5.887 billion for capitation of Junior School Learners, Ksh.964 million for Free Day Secondary Education capitation, Ksh.300 million for Quality Assurance and Standards, Ksh.173 million for Co-curricular activities, Ksh.444 million for the recruitment of Quality Assurance and Standards Officers, and Ksh.470 million for the supply of sanitary towels.
Regarding the development budget, the state department has reduced the allocation for the Secondary Quality Improvement Project by Ksh.8.912 billion, as it is scheduled to conclude in FY 2023/24.
However, an additional Ksh.4.7 billion has been allocated to implement the Kenya Primary Education Equity Learning Program, resulting in an overall budget increase of Ksh.5.018 billion from the previous fiscal year.
The PS emphasized that the budget aims to align with and implement the Bottom-Up Economic Transformative agenda by automating education systems through the adoption of the National Education Management Information System (NEMIS).
This adoption is expected to enhance cost-effectiveness, efficiency, and seamless integration of all educational management data, thereby improving the timeliness, quality, and relevance of data in the country.
In support of the Competence-Based Assessment project, the PS mentioned that ICT networks will expand their database to accommodate it.
Additionally, the budget prioritizes improving the infrastructure of Junior Secondary Schools to provide better learning conditions, increase enrollment nationwide, and support the implementation of 28 capital projects.
Out of these projects, 21 are funded by the government with Ksh.7.768 billion, while Development Partners fund seven projects with Ksh.11.939 billion, with the World Bank being the largest contributor with Ksh.10.589 billion.
The report also outlined key projects supported by the government, including Primary School Infrastructure Improvement, Secondary School Infrastructure Projects, and the improvement of teacher training colleges.
Development partners are supporting the Kenya Primary Education Equity in Learning project and the Kenya Secondary Education Quality Improvement Project (SEQIP).
Parliamentary Committee Recieves Education Budget Allocations and Priorities
