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The National Treasury has slightly increased the educational sector’s budgetary allocation from Ksh628.6 billion in the 2023/24 Financial Year to Ksh656.6 billion in the 2024/25 Financial Year.

While presenting the budget highlights on Thursday, June 13, 2024, Treasury CS argued that the increase will help avert several issues that have dogged the country’s education sector.

Junior Secondary School (JSS) teachers are among the biggest winners in the budget estimate read out by CS Ndung’u. The teachers, who have recently called off their nationwide strike, will now be employed on a permanent and pensionable basis.

The government has allocated Ksh13.3 billion which will be utilised to convert the JSS teachers’ employment terms to a permanent basis.

The JSS teachers called off their strike after the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) and Members of Parliament agreed to look into their considerations which included permanent jobs.

Junior Secondary School capitation has also been capped at Ksh30.7 billion.

“The government has continued to heavily invest in education to facilitate the development of the necessary skills and competencies to learners from pre-primary to the tertiary level to enable them effectively play their part by contributing to the nation-building effort, and partake of the dividends of shared prosperity,” the CS stated.

School feeding program

Another contentious issue was the school feeding programme. Most stakeholders had protested the move to scrap the programme. However, in the 2024/25 budget estimates, the government has allocated Ksh3 billion.

However, the capitation for school feeding programme has been reduced from the previous Ksh4.9 billion.

To shoulder the cost of examinations, the government has allocated Ksh5 billion as a waiver in the sector.

Other funds

Ksh71 billion has been allocated to free primary and day secondary education, Ksh11.1 billion for Kenya’s primary education equity in learning, Ksh6 billion for infrastructure development in primary and secondary schools and Ksh150 million for ICT integration in secondary schools.

In the next financial year, Ksh62.8 billion has been set aside for the Higher Education Loans Board (HELB) and other scholarships and Ksh700 million to cater for research, science, technology and innovation.

2023/24 allocations

“To improve education outcomes in the country, I propose to the National Assembly to effect budget allocations of Ksh628.6 billion to the Education Sector. Out of the proposed allocation, Ksh12.5 billion will cater for free primary education; Ksh65.4 billion for free day secondary education including insurance under NHIF for secondary school students,” Ndung’u stated.

“Ksh25.5 billion for Junior Secondary School Capitation; Ksh5.0 billion to support examinations fee waiver; Ksh4.8 billion for Recruitment of 20,000 Intern Teachers; Ksh1.0 billion for promotion of teachers; Ksh4.9 billion for the School Feeding Programme; Ksh940 million for the provision of sanitary towels.”

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