Education gains that most Commonwealth countries have made over the last 50 years risk being rolled back in the absence of a major transformation of the sector, President Uhuru Kenyatta has said.

President said the extended worldwide closure of education institutions owing to the Covid-19 pandemic not only led to learning losses for students but also increased levels of school dropout and exacerbated existing educational inequalities.

He said these losses will not be easily recovered even if schools quickly return to their pre-2020 performance levels. “We are at a moment in history when we have a unique opportunity to build better and more resilient education systems and to accelerate learning for all,” Uhuru said.  He continued: “It is a moment to make our education systems more responsive to the changing nature of work and to transform education into a more effective tool of socioeconomic change.”

The President’s speech was presented by Interior Cabinet Secretary, Dr Fred Matiang’i during the official opening of 21st Conference of Commonwealth Education Ministers in a Nairobi hotel.

The President affirmed the need for countries to urgently recover learning losses.

In attendance were Commonwealth ministers led by Prof George Magoha and Secretariat Secretary, Patricia Scotland QC.

Magoha said the two-day meeting will provide Commonwealth Education ministers the opportunity to review and assess progress towards SDG 4 at regional and national levels.