The Education Sector Crisis Demands Immediate Reforms – Kenyan Women’s Group

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A team of Kenyan Women under the auspices of three groups; Echo Network Africa Foundation (ENAF), The African Women Leadership Network (AWLN-Kenya) Chapter and The Democracy Trust Fund (DTF) are calling on the Government to prioritize education by addressing challenges facing the system immediately.

Concerned by one hundred percent transition from junior secondary to senior secondary schools, the women groups urged government to act swiftly to help solve challenges facing the shift.

Benta Opande, KEWOTA CEO said just like other Kenyans are concerned about the crisis surrounding education sector especially transitioning from junior secondary in grade 9 to senior secondary in grade 10, Kenyan women are more worried of the confusion and demands immediate action by government.

Ms Opande cited for instance; low transition rates from junior school to senior school, chaotic placement processes of pupils; the high cost of school fee, inadequate infrastructure, and insufficient teaching staff including learning materials among others.

In short, Ms Opande alluded that education in Kenya is increasingly becoming inaccessible to the majority of Kenyans, thereby worsening social inequalities which is unacceptable.

“In this regard, as Kenyan women leaders, we insist that the education of our children to be taken seriously. Currently, education is way too important to experiment with. So, we urge the government to act with speed and address the challenges facing 100% transition off take,” Ms Opande stated.

The group recommended that all bursaries be consolidated into one basket to address the financial and infrastructural crisis currently facing the education sector. It is only this way that resources would serve its intended purpose.

“We wish to remind Kenyans that the right to education is anchored in the Constitution 2010. All children must therefore, have access to education regardless of their backgrounds,” Dr Jennifer Riria President and CEO, ENAF emphasized.

Article 43(1)(f) of the Constitution of Kenya 2010 guarantees every person the right to education. As part of the economic and social rights, this provision mandates that the state should take measures to ensure access to education, often interpreted alongside the right to free and compulsory basic education

Furthermore, the group recommend that urgent and targeted action be taken to address bottlenecks related to CBC. Some key actions to include, but not limited to; accelerating teacher retraining, bridging infrastructural gaps, and reducing the financial burden of school uniforms on parents.

On a positive note, the Women highly appreciated and commended the incredible efforts by the women from Kiboi Market in Kisii County, who voluntarily collected over Ksh 80, 000 to take an orphan girl, Frida, to senior secondary school.

This goes on to dismantle the popular myth that ‘women are their own enemies.’ Nothing could be further from the truth.

“We urge other women to emulate the actions of the women from Kiboi market. A similar act of kindness was demonstrated by Police Officers from a Station in Nandi County. Again, it clearly demonstrates the resilience of Kenyan people amidst the challenges,” Dr Riria commended.

The women group commended President Ruto for directing that all pupils must transition from junior school year 9 to senior school year 10, regardless of their socio-economic status. Unfortunately, the directive is yet to be fully complied with.

Many children, especially those from extremely poor backgrounds are yet to report to grade 10. Clearly, a lot more needs to be done to mop up all children and boost the numbers without leaving any child behind.

“We appreciate that no one entity can singularly tackle the challenges facing our education sector. We call on Civil Society, the Private Sector, Religious leaders, Education actors, and all Kenyans to emulate the examples given by the mama mboga in Kisii and police officers in Nandi Counties.

The women group call upon friends of Kenya, including Development Partners, to step and support the education sector to position the country for global competitiveness. They are also reminding Kenyans that the country was built on the ‘Harambee Spirit’ that is what everybody needs to surmount the current challenges.

The togetherness spirit has worked in the past and it can still just serve as well even better today.