President William Ruto has warned politicians against politicising the education of Kenyan children, saying the government will not allow tribal or selfish interests to limit access to learning.

Addressing on Friday, January 9, 2026, in Nakuru ASK Showground during the disbursement of the National Youth Opportunities Towards Advancement project (NYOTA) business start-up capital for counties in the South Rift. The president said national schools were created to dismantle barriers rooted in colonialism and tribalism, not to entrench them.

“We want our children to study in every institution available to them in Kenya, especially our national schools,” he said.

He noted that the institutions were built using public resources and must therefore serve all Kenyans fairly.

He said no child should be sent home over fees, noting that capitation was released before schools reopened, alongside an increased education budget from Ksh500 billion to Ksh700 billion, adding that 100,000 teachers have been hired to address shortages, with 24,000 set to report later in January 2026.

“The number of teachers we have employed in the past three years is the largest in the history of the country,” he said.

Ruto said the youth remain central to government investments aimed at unlocking jobs and opportunities.

“We are deliberate about the youth agenda. For the first time in Kenya, we have a concrete, deliberate, and intentional plan on how we create jobs and other opportunities for the youth,” he said.

Ruto defends school capitation

This comes days after he broke his silence on the state of education in Kenya and capitation to schools, defending his administration’s intervention measures to remedy the sector.

Speaking in Eldoret, Uasin Gishu County, on Thursday, January 8, 2026, during the Nyota startup capital disbursement, the head of state confirmed that the government had disbursed a total of Ksh44 billion to schools before the school reopening date of Monday, January 5, 2026.

The disbursement to primary, junior, and senior schools represents 50 per cent of this year’s total funding.

He added that the government had improved the educational infrastructure and other education reforms, such as teachers’ promotions, as part of a wider plan to enhance the sector, which has suffered from funding shortfalls.

“I am happy we are having this conversation about the state of education in Kenya. We have demonstrated our track record in matters of education,” he stated.

“We have streamlined the Competency-Based Curriculum (CBC) that was troubling parents and children, and it is now clear where it is going. We also have employed teachers and placed capitation money in schools for the first time before the children set foot in school. We sent Ksh44 billion to our schools last week before the opening of schools,” he said.

Ruto explained that the government had committed to ensuring the full amount of the standard capitation rate of Ksh22,244 per learner per year for senior schools also reaches the learning centres in time for the next two terms.

“We have committed to making sure that the full capitation funds of Ksh 22,000 for each and every child are available in the next two terms so that our children can study uninterrupted,” he stated.