Relief to Primary Schools as MPs Push for Capitation Review
Members of Parliament want capitation to primary schools increased from the current sh 1,420 per child to Sh7,760 to cater for expenses occasioned by the Competency-Based Curriculum (CBC).
The MPs pointed out that the current capitation model put in place in 2015 needs to be reviewed due to the change in the curriculum and the prevailing high cost of living.
In a motion sponsored by Gatanga MP Edward Muriu, the lawmakers pointed out that CBC implementation requires a lot of resources hence the need to review the capitation.
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Wajir East MP Adan Daud said that without increasing the capitation, then there is no free primary education.
“This country has adopted a new curriculum which is very intense and therefore requires a lot of resources to implement. The students require consistent assessment under this curriculum,” he said.
Homa Bay Town MP Peter Kaluma said CBC came with additional costs in terms of facilities and so the Education ministry should not only increase the capitation but also ensure timely release of funds to schools.
The lawmakers also called for the increase of National Government Constituency Development Fund(NG-CDF)for bursaries from the current 35 per cent to at least 40 per cent to cater for students who joined junior secondary school(JSS).
The MPs said that currently, they cannot give bursary to JSS students because it is not pro-vided for in the CDF Act, clocking out many young people from school. They said most CDF boards at the moment on-ly consider students in secondary schools and tertiary institutions for bursary allocations.
“The 35 per cent that is currently provided is not even enough, especially for those with vast constituencies. We are struggling to share the money. We are staring at a big problem. The government should actually take over the bursary for JSS learners, Gilgil MP Martha Wangari said.
“Parents are struggling with they can’t raise the fees and them, we are not funding JSS,” she added.
