North Rift schools now face closure as drought bites hard
By Wycliffe Kipsang, November 9, 2022More than 20 schools in the banditry-prone North Rift risk closure due to persistent drought.
The situation has been aggravated by rampant cases of insecurity in the area which has led to many learners fleeing the volatile region with their parents fearing for their lives.
A spot check by People Daily revealed that life is not easy for many learners, some of who are forced to climb mango trees during lunch break to assuage their hunger pangs.
At Tot Primary School in Elgeyo-Marakwet sub-county, Deputy Head Teacher Johnson Barmonga said they had received some food rations from the government under the school feeding programme but he was concerned that the supplies were almost running out.
“We fear the situation will worsen in the next one week as the food is almost running out. We thank well-wishers who have continued to support us but we need more help,” said Barmonga.
Water shortage
Kenya National Union of Teachers (Knut) officials in the region have called on the government to send relief food supplies to learning institutions and ensure all schools are under the school feeding programme.
“The situation is dire here. Many schools risk closure due to the persistent drought which has also led to drying up of major water sources. Learners are forced to travel long distances in search of water exposing them to armed bandits roaming the valley,” Elgeyo-Marakwet County Knut branch secretary John Cheberi told People Daily.
According to Elgeyo-Marakwet county Commissioner John Korir and Governor Wisley Rotich, Soy South, Soy North, Emsoo, Tambach, Arror, Endo and Sambirir wards are the most affected by the prolonged dry spell and the resultant famine and water shortage.
Korir, who chaired the County Steering Group (CSG) in Iten, cited lack of water and insecurity in Kerio Valley as the major contributors to the shortage of food in the area. The administrator said more than 100,000 people are in need of relief food aid.
The County Steering Group called for the resumption of school feeding programme, not just in primary but also in secondary schools and Early Childhood Education (ECDE) centres.
Elgeyo-Marakwet Kenya Union of Post Primary Education Teachers (KUPPET) Organising Secretary Paul Biwott said most students in the area do not pay school fees in cash but in terms of livestock and cereals.
He said that because of the drought, many schools were experiencing difficulties because of crop failure and death of livestock.
The situation is not different in the neighbouring Baringo County where many schools also risk closure with Baringo North and Baringo South sub-counties being the worst hit.
People Daily established that in some schools, bandits had also vandalised vital equipment like solar panels and stole school items, including food.
The government is running a livestock offtake programme in some of the drought-stricken counties in the North Rift.
The programme, which is being spearheaded by the national government and other partners including the Red Cross and the Kenya Meat Commission (KMC), is aimed at reducing losses suffered by herders due to the drought.
North Rift Red Cross Regional Manager Esther Chege said in the programme, livestock are slaughtered and the meat distributed to the population.
According to Chege, West Pokot and Turkana counties, which are the worst affected by the drought, will benefit from the programme.
She said that in Turkana county, more than 3,000 livestock will be slaughtered which will benefit more than 45,000 food insecure people while 1,310 livestock will be slaughtered to benefit 13,100 people in West Pokot county.
“We believe that this for us is a milestone towards mindset change and we are seeing our communities warming up to this. We know this is a drop in the ocean but this is the targeted number of people at the moment due to the funding,” said Chege.
More than 120,000 people in Turkana County and 85,000 in West Pokot County are in dire need of relief food aid, according to Red Cross data.