The over one million pupils will join form one Monday marking the first time all 15 million learners will be in school since the disruption of learning
By Ivy Maloy
Candidates who sat for the Kenya Certificate of Primary Education examination last year are set to join form one beginning Monday 2 August 2021. The over one million pupils will join form one Monday marking the first time all 15 million learners will be in school since the disruption of learning in the country by the covid-19 pandemic last year.
And although the government has since revised school fees in boarding schools owing to a shorter academic calendar, parents say raising the fees for their children is an uphill task due to the rising cost of living and the economic challenges occasioned by the Covid-19 pandemic.
Stakeholders in the education sector say the state of the economy may hinder many parents from being able to provide school fees for their children. While launching a 30 million shillings’ bursary kitty for needy students in Baringo, Governor Stanley Kiptis acknowledged the harsh economic effects of Covid 19.
The money, according to a principal in the area, will go a long way in cushioning 60% of the students’ population without which they would not have gone back to school. The government has since revised school fees for boarding schools with this year’s academic calendar being 9 weeks shorter. Whereas the academic calendar is usually 39 weeks, the 2021 calendar will run for 30 weeks.
By 4AM Monday morning, there were already hundreds of parents and their children at Moi Forces High School, Nairobi, waiting for admission. This is a beginning for all of them and we certainly wish them all the best.
SOURCES: KBC