Parents of secondary, college and university students in Ruiru, Kiambu county, have expressed shock over the reduced amounts allocated through the constituency’s education bursary fund.
As a result, they are appealing to the National government to increase the bursary kitty to match the region’s growing population, currently estimated at 800,000.
Several parents, speaking during the disbursement of Sh90 million in bursary cheques to over 20,000 applicants, voiced their frustration after receiving smaller amounts this year. The allocations, which previously stood at Sh7,000 per student, were reduced to between Sh5,000 and Sh3,500 for day scholars.
Area MP Simon King’ara, along with his bursary allocation team, faced challenges controlling the large crowd of parents who gathered at the Ruiru Stadium from the constituency’s eight wards to collect the cheques. Students in day secondary schools were allocated Sh3,500, while those in boarding schools and colleges received Sh5,000, representing a Sh2,000 drop from the previous year.
Larger allocations
While acknowledging the MP’s efforts, parents called for a more equitable distribution of bursary funds. They noted that students in some less populated areas were receiving larger allocations compared to those in densely populated areas like Ruiru. “We were expecting the amounts to be increased to at least Sh10,000 per student, not reduced. Ruiru is getting a raw deal compared to other constituencies,” said Vincent Muigai, a concerned parent. Earlier, MP King’ara explained that more than 40,000 students applied for bursaries in Ruiru, yet the constituency only received Sh80 million from the National Government Constituency Development Fund (NG-CDF). To accommodate the high number of applicants, King’ara sought additional support from donors.
“We allocated Sh80 million for this year’s disbursements, but the turnout was overwhelming. Even after verification, there were still over 20,000 deserving cases,” he said. King’ara added that he had written to the NG-CDF Board seeking permission to exceed the KSh 80 million allocation ceiling to ensure all deserving students could benefit.
“Education bursaries drain funds intended for other development projects within the education sector, so my office has had to devise alternative ways to meet these needs, including partnering with corporate sponsors and the private sector,” he explained.
Through these partnerships, King’ara revealed, over 50 classrooms have been built in various primary and secondary schools in the constituency under a public-private participation (PPP) initiative.
