The Education ministry has allocated Sh6,000 per student per year to cater for maintenance and improvement of facilities in public secondary schools.
Cabinet Secretary Amina Mohammed yesterday said the money was part of Sh22,244 provided under subsidised secondary education. She said parents whose children were admitted in boarding schools would contribute Sh2,000 extra for maintenance and improvement of school infrastructure.Amina said she expected boards of management in secondary schools to use Sh8,000 in boarding schools and Sh6,000 in day secondary schools to improve existing infrastructure and in some cases put up new ones.
Funds under maintenance and improvement would cater for facilities such as classrooms, science laboratories, hostels, dining halls, ablution blocks, among others. The CS called for strict supervision on the use of the funds.
Belio Kipsang, the Principal Secretary for Basic Education, indicated in a circular, issued on October 25 that the ministry would offer guidance on the use of funds under maintenance and improvement during the actual disbursement.
The circular was sent to regional, county and sub-county coordinators of education.It called on school management and principals to adhere to financial regulations stipulated in the financial management instructions’ handbook that was issued by the ministry in 2006.
The circular has guidelines on the implementation of Free Day Secondary Education (FDSE) funds for next year.
All learners in public secondary schools will receive Sh22,224 per year to cover tuition, medical, activity, maintenance and development and Strengthening of Mathematics and Sciences in Secondary Education (SMASSE).
Dr Kipsang said the first portion of the money for the 2019 FDSE would be released by National Treasury next month based on the 50:30:20 ratio, while the balance would be released in April and August.
Under the FDSE, parents are only required to pay fees for school uniforms, boarding costs for boarders, lunch for day scholars and clear balances for continuing students before January next year.
According to the guidelines, parents with students in category A schools will pay Sh53,554 per year, bringing the total when added to Sh22,224 to Sh75,798.Category A schools are all national schools and extra-county institutions in Nairobi, Mombasa, Nakuru, Kisumu, Nyeri, Thika and Eldoret.
The ministry has capped the fees for boarding schools in category B at Sh40,535, bringing the total to Sh62,779 per year per student.Government has also increased capitation for Special Needs Secondary Education to Sh57,974 and parents will only pay Sh12,790 per student per year, bringing the total to Sh70,764.
Under FDSE, the Government will also supply English Literature and Fasihi set books to Form Three and Form Four students and has directed principals not to procure the set books.Amina said all the efforts were geared towards ensuring that the 1,052,364 candidates who sat KCPE this year transit to secondary education.
President Uhuru Kenyatta on Jamhuri Day directed county administrators to ensure all 2018 KCPE candidates report to secondary schools in January.