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The Kenya Universities and Colleges Central Placement Service (KUCCPS) has raised concern over the low transition rate from secondary to tertiary institutions in Wajir.

KUCCPS chief executive Mercy Wahome (pictured) said the transition rate is insignificant and requires urgent intervention. For instance, Wahome said less than 40 per cent of students who sat their 2021 Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education in Wajir enrolled in various tertiary institutions.

“In 2021, we only had 31 per cent of students who got grade C+ (plus) and above applying for university education,” she said.

Wahome made the remarks at Wajir East Technical Training Institute at the weekend when she rolled out a community campaign to ensure all learners exiting secondary schools join tertiary institutions.

According to Wahome, the county registered over 6,000 students last year, out of which 49 per cent attained a mean grade of C+ (plus) and above. “Unfortunately, from the statistics only 992 students applied for the courses. We need to work with local leaders so that we get more students applying for the courses,” she stated.
Also, of concern to Government, she said, is the low intake being experienced in technical training institutes established in the county.
“In the three technical institutions namely Wajir East, South and Tambach, we just have 59 students. So clearly, there is a lot of work that needs to be done in this region”, explained Wahome.
She called on local leaders and parents to encourage students to take advantage of the government’s subsidised education program to pursue various courses of their choice.
On new universities and Tvets funding model, Wahome said the government will fully cover about 45,000 learners joining different public universities. “We have 42,000 Kenyans who will be supported to take up courses in Tvets that the government has constructed and fully financed,” she stated.