Principals Want to Raise School Fees
Heads of Institutions are seeking to raise school fees by Sh. 16,000, an attempt that could irk parents due to the congested academic calendar that is going to force parents to pay school fees four times in 2022.
2022 is going to have four terms compressed in a single year due to the time lost during the prolonged closure of schools in 2020.
The government was forced to close all learning schools to curb the spread of the novel coronavirus pandemic following the reporting of the first case in March of 2020. Little was known about the new virus which caused panic world-over.
The principals are also calling on the government o increase the Free Day Secondary Education kitty in order to help in easing the financial mess that has crippled operations in institutions where fees payment has been abysmal.
School heads of secondary schools had gathered at Mombasa under the Kenya Secondary Schools Heads Association (KESSHA) and claimed that additional funding could help schools that are facing hard times ahead financially.
They recommended that the Ministry of Education increases school fees in boarding schools by Sh. 8,000 and that government capitation is increased to Sh. 30,000 per learner yearly. The government currently pays Sh. 22,244 for each student.
“Parents must realize that inflation in this country means prices of many commodities including food requires payment for the services offered. To run the school effectively, we need more funds,” said Dr Oloo, one of the school heads who attended the KESSHA conference in Mombasa.
Besides, the principals also called out the government for the policy of not paying for pupils who are above the age of 18.
They also said that after a learner reaches the age of maturity (18 years), their details are removed from the National Education Management Information System (NEMIS).
KESSHA chairperson, Kahi Indimuli said that many learning institutions especially sub-cunty and county schools do not have enough scientific labs which has affected the performance of those schools.
The principals also called for pupils to be required to purchase crucial items such as Bibles, Korans, Mathematical Sets, Kamusi, Dictionaries, and Atlases.
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