Publishers To Increase Cost of CBC Approved Course Books
A group of Kenyan publishers intends to raise the price of approved course books beginning with the next academic year.
Publishers are pushing for price increases due to the rising cost of printing paper in the country, which has resulted in the majority of them losing money by maintaining the same prices over time.
In a letter to the National Treasury and the Ministry of Education, the publishers are requesting that textbook prices be reduced by 12% for the coming academic year.
“We hope in the 2023 academic year we will be allowed to increase our prices, otherwise our profit margins will continue to suffer,” the chairperson of the Kenya Publishers Association stated.
To meet the demand for producing books, publishers use imported printing papers primarily from China, India, and Egypt.
However, unless they receive direct authorization from the government, publishers are not required to adjust the prices of approved course books.
If the demands are granted, parents will be required to pay more beginning in January 2023, when the academic calendar returns to normal.
The 2022 academic year will have four terms, with two national examinations scheduled to be administered during the same time period to compensate for the time lost during the pandemic’s peak.
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Due to the compressed academic calendar, parents have had to dig deeper into their pockets to pay school fees four times in one calendar year.
The school terms have also required parents to purchase books for the four terms and incur additional charges in order to meet the requirements of the |Competency-Based Curriculum (CBC).
Publishers To Increase Cost of CBC Approved Course Books
