The Kenya National Union of Teachers (KNUT) has threatened to boycott the supervision of the 2026 national examinations, citing delayed payments owed to teachers who participated in the 2025 exam exercise.

According to the Secretary General of KNUT Kakamega North, Shadrack Muyaka, who spoke during a public gathering on Thursday, March 26, 2026, in Kakamega,  the union has raised concerns over what it termed as persistent delays in compensating invigilators, supervisors, and examiners.

He warned that the situation has eroded trust between teachers and the Kenya National Examinations Council (KNEC).

New round of examinations without pay

Muyaka expressed deep frustration, stating it is neither proper nor fair to expect educators to prepare for a new round of examinations when they have yet to be compensated for their past labor.

“The teachers of this country need to be paid before we proceed to the next level of doing another exam, because it is not good manners. It is not proper. It is not fair to have not paid our teachers, and we are preparing for another exam,” Muyaka said.

According to Mayuka, if these payments are not made, they will be forced to withdraw labor to ensure teachers are prioritized before the next exam cycle begins.

“We are saying if they are not paid, we shall down our tools. We shall withdraw labor so that the teachers of this country are paid first before we go to another exam,” Mayuka said.

Failed Pledge by PS

Muyaka said the dispute started due to a failed pledge by the Principal Secretary (PS) of Education.

He said the PS had explicitly promised during a meeting at Masinde Muliro University that payments would be processed within two weeks. Muyaka said the deadline reportedly passed last Friday, leaving the union feeling “not happy” and “not comfortable” with the current situation.

“We are giving out an ultimatum because the PS of education said in his own words that two weeks and two weeks elapsed last Friday. And we are now beyond the two weeks he promised us when we were at Misinde Muliro University. So we are not happy, and we are not comfortable,” Muyaka said.

Budgetary and cash flow constraints

The Ministry of Education has attributed the delay in paying contracted professionals who administered and marked the 2025 national examinations to budgetary constraints and cash flow challenges.

In a press statement dated February 12, 2026, and shared on X by Cabinet Secretary Julius Migos Ogamba on February 13, 2026, the ministry acknowledged concerns raised by supervisors, invigilators, security personnel, examiners and other contracted staff.

The Ministry of Education said the delay in payment of allowances to professionals who handled the 2025 national examinations was due to budgetary and cash flow constraints affecting the release of funds.

It also noted that the disbursement challenges were linked to broader financial limitations currently impacting government expenditure. It acknowledged the concerns raised by affected personnel and termed them legitimate.