TSC requires Sh35 billion to promote 178,871 teachers

The Teachers Service Commission (TSC) has stated that a budget of Sh35 billion is necessary to advance the careers of 178,871 teachers who have been stuck in the same job groups for years. This information was shared with the National Assembly Education Committee on Tuesday.

TSC CEO Nancy Macharia, who appeared before the committee led by Vice Chair Eve Obara (MP, Kasipul), explained that the stagnation is a result of chronic underfunding, which has prevented the implementation of the commission’s career progression guidelines.

“Insufficient budget allocations have severely hindered teachers’ career advancement. This stagnation has led to complaints from unions, decreased morale, and increased turnover in the profession,” Macharia stated.

In response to allegations of favoritism and biased promotions, Macharia noted that only Sh2 billion has been allocated for teacher promotions in the 2023/2024 and 2024/2025 financial years, which is significantly less than the Sh35 billion needed to address the backlog.

During this time, 151,611 teachers were promoted, with 75,090 receiving common cadre promotions and 76,521 through competitive processes. In the current financial year, 25,252 teachers have already been promoted following interviews held earlier this year.

Despite a large number of applications, 381 positions advertised in November and December 2024 remain unfilled due to financial and logistical issues. In November 2024, 5,690 teachers applied for promotions, and an additional 19,943 applications were submitted in December.

Macharia also mentioned that although the TSC requested Sh2 billion from the National Treasury for this year’s promotions, only Sh1 billion was allocated, once again falling short of the commission’s requirements.

Her comments come amid rising dissatisfaction from the Kenya Secondary School Heads Association (KESSHA), which has accused the TSC of unfair promotion practices, particularly criticizing the quota-based system as discriminatory and demotivating.