Schools facing imminent closure due to financial crisis

Details have emerged about the possible closure of public secondary schools nationwide, as school heads now reveal chronic decline in government funding that threatens to halt operations.

A document by the Kenya Secondary Schools Heads Association (KESSHA), titled Operational Crisis in Schools and signed by Chairman Willie Kuria, reveals that the government is disbursing only Sh10,000 per student annually, less than half of the expected Sh22,244.

This shortfall of Sh11,721 has steadily worsened since 2020, when the Covid-19 pandemic disrupted school operations.

School heads are now warning that without immediate action, learning institutions may soon shut down, putting the future of thousands of students at risk.

The document further reveals shows that schools received Sh17,243 per student in 2020/2021 financial year. However, the government retained Sh6,546 for development, funding co-curricula activities and purchasing of textbooks, leaving schools with only Sh10,697.

In 2021/2022 financial year, a total of Sh17,792 was released per learner but only Sh11,039 reached school accounts with the remaining 6,752 retained at the Ministry of Education.

In 2022/2023 financial year, the schools received the least amount of funding only getting Sh9,701 out of the Sh17,339 that was released by the Treasury for each learners’ capitation, meaning the government retained a whooping Sh7,637.

The decline was also observed in the 2023/2024 financial year where Sh16,153 was released by the exchequer as each learners capitation but only Sh10,523 got to schools.