The Kenyan government has allocated Sh 218 million to build 218 Grade 9 classrooms in Nyeri County, in a national program to absorb the pioneer group of Grade 9 learners under CBC. This is part of the nationwide preparation for the absorption of 1.3 million learners currently in Grade 8 in January 2025.
Phased Construction Approach
Nyeri County Director of Education, Jane Njogu said the construction had been phased into two. During the first phase, 66 classrooms are being constructed in 37 schools, while another 152 classrooms will be up in the second phase of the project in 128 Primary Schools.
Njogu said that the first phase construction is going well as the project was currently at 52 percent. She oozed confidence that the classrooms were likely to be ready before the scheduled time. For instance, she said, at Chaka Primary, the roofing is complete while most of the others are at walling, while four schools are at slab level.
Criteria for Schools Selection
Schools are selected for classrooms based on the number of student enrollment. Minimum number of students that was required for a school to be registered as a Junior School by the Ministry of Education was 45 learners. Schools with more numbers will have more classrooms built for multiple streams. Where a school has been identified as single stream, only one classroom will be constructed while double and triple stream schools will have more classrooms to be built as may be deemed necessary.
Njogu said the need for Grade 9 classrooms arises because, at the moment, Grade 7 and Grade 8 students are accommodated in existing infrastructure. Since there is no provision for classes beyond Grade 8, he added, the new classrooms are of importance to the next coming learners so that they progress smoothly.
It has targeted to construct 18,000 classrooms countrywide in selected Primary Schools to support the transition to Grade 9. It intends to construct 11,000 classrooms with the support of development partners while 7,000 classrooms will be funded through the National Government Constituency Development Fund- NG-CDF.
Speaking earlier this month, Education Cabinet Secretary Julius Ogamba said the Ministry is currently working on 3,500 classrooms across Kenya, with an additional 7,500 classrooms set to be completed by December 2024. To that end, the government shall disburse Sh 7.5 billion to schools.
Cost and Funding of Classrooms
Each classroom is expected to cost Sh 1 million, a budget that has been standardized by the Ministry of Education. The funds this time round, unlike in previous projects, would be managed by Boards of Management from the selected schools, Ms. Njogu explained. Accounts for the project have been opened at various schools, and contractors are allowed to receive payments at different stages of construction.
This streamlined approach is anticipated to speed up the building process, most especially since most of the contractors are local and take periodic payments in order to be able to continue work.