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A new research has shown the need to improve education functions like capitation for Early Child Development Education (ECDE) and teacher-learner ratio due to high enrollment rate in the centres.

An Institute of Certified Public Accountants of Kenya (ICPAK) report released yesterday also called for the need to implement National ECD Policy Frameworks as well as initiating mobile school systems for pastoralists’ communities to accommodate their children and lifestyle.

The report has since called for an increased capitation for ECDE, though some counties have proposed a conditional grant specific for the implementation of particular programmes. 

“There is need to ensure close working relationship between National Treasury and counties to ensure timely disbursement of funds,” the report.

It also recommended the need to operationalise gender rehabilitation centers to minimise early marriages and Female Genital Mutilation and employment of skilled and qualified instructors in polytechnics.

The report also calls for putting in place monitoring and assessment of quality assurance to ensure there is no laxity on tutors and sensitise community on courses offered in polytechnics.

The study showed there has been an increase in the number of village polytechnics with new ones having been constructed under devolution.

However, the study further established that home craft centres are largely undeveloped in virtually all the counties since there is lack of a requisite policy establishing them.

Focus group discussions during the study indicated that pre -primary education and village polytechnics have improved while home craft centres and childcare facilities remained the same.

Some of the challenges impeding successful delivery of educational services at the county level include high turnover rates for ECDE and are lowly funded. 

Similarly, inadequate investment in succession planning within departments, low and unclear scheme of service for ECDE teachers at the county level are not defined for upward mobility.

More focus

“The established that there is inadequate capitation for ECDE, and in most cases of financial resources from one department to another without authorisation from the respective accounting officer jeopardised proper functioning of ECDE,” the report.

On ECDE curriculum, the report states that there is more focus in terms of content/curriculum development on primary and secondary education by policy makers at the expense of ECDEs.

Duplication of functions was also noted, where lack of understanding of functional assignment under the Fourth Schedule of the Constitution and there are cases where counties implement national government functions like construction of classrooms for primary schools.

On the other hand, ICPAK has called on the need for a clear system to help track beneficiaries of various funds from the government to ensure that needy cases are supported for vocational training to enhance accountability.