Enforcing Fair School Fees: Ministry’s Directive to Combat Inflation
School administrators have received a stern warning regarding the inflation of school fees as schools prepare to reopen on Monday, May 13, 2024, following an extended April break due to widespread flooding across several counties.
Addressing the issue in Trans Nzoia County after overseeing the national tree planting initiative, Education Cabinet Secretary (CS) Ezekiel Machogu cautioned school administrators against demanding more from parents than what the ministry has specified.
Emphasizing that it is unlawful to flout Ministry of Education directives, Machogu instructed county education directors and the Teachers Service Commission to ensure strict compliance with the directive.
He emphasized that those who disregard the directive will face dismissal, highlighting the critical importance of the education sector and condemning any actions hindering Kenyan children’s right to education as detrimental to progress.
Machogu issued a one-week deadline for county education directors to submit comprehensive reports on schools violating the directive for appropriate action.
“The Ministry has clearly outlined parental financial obligations for different types of schools. For instance, parents of students in national schools are required to pay only Sh53,000, the same amount applicable to extra-county schools. For county schools, the fee is Sh45,000, while day schools only require payment for lunch programs, with fees to be agreed upon between the school and parents,” he clarified, stressing that no child should be denied education due to financial constraints.
Addressing the decision to extend the April holiday by two weeks, Machogu affirmed that prioritizing the right to life was paramount.
Furthermore, Machogu revealed plans to assist individuals whose academic certificates were lost in the floods by providing them with replacements.
The CS’s call for fee regulation came after Trans Nzoia Governor George Natembeya criticized certain school administrators for turning educational institutions into profit-driven entities and for unjustly expelling students who hadn’t completed fee payments.
Governor Natembeya urged the government to standardize lunch fees for day scholars, citing instances where schools exploited this requirement to demand excessive sums from parents.
“We appeal to the government to provide clarity on fee structures, particularly regarding lunch program payments, as some individuals exploit it to exploit financially strained parents,” he stated, expressing concern about students being sent away due to outstanding fee balances.
