The Kenya Primary Schools Head Teachers Association has sent a stern warning over delayed disbursement of Free Primary Education capitation funds. Addressing a press briefing at KEPSHA Secretariat in Nairobi yesterday, the chairman, Johnson Nzioka, pointed out the reverberation of financial constraints in schools due to the non-release of promised funds by the government on time.
The Ministry of Education had assured that 30% of the money required in the second term would be disbursed on time. The pledge has not been honored thus worsening the financial situation for schools. This came as Nzioka pointed to the previous term where only a small portion of the necessary funds was released, hence accumulating the debt and numerous challenges in running the schools by the school heads.
Head teachers are grappling with a severe financial crunch that has made running institutions effectively difficult. Delayed funds have caused debt to surge, with many schools on the brink of suspending programs due to lack of adequate financial resources. This is likely to disrupt the learning process and affect students’ experiences at school.
The government has attributed the delay in disbursement of funds to issues with the National Education Management Information System. However, Nzioka said NEMIS was not being implemented effectively as data is at times erased hence complicating record-keeping for school heads.
In Junior Secondary, only 50% of the capitation has been received in schools, an aspect that greatly affects operations. National Treasurer Kennedy Kyeva said the delay afflicted all operations, including co-curricular, and no child should be denied capitation. He sought government support to ensure no learner misses these funds.
One issue compounding challenges on the financial side is delayed issuance of birth certificates by the Ministry of Interior and Coordination of National Government. The same is vital in the registration of pupils in NEMIS and delay hurts accuracy in school record keeping for funds to be released on time.
Despite the fact that they had no funds, head teachers have still worked hard and ensured students participated in the ongoing music festivals that have reached the regional level. According to the National Secretary of the association, Irene Yiaile, most head teachers’ commitment has been highly appreciated as activities continue amidst a no-fund environment.
This further delays the fund release, which can jeopardize the transition of JSS students to Grade 9. In addition, the schools are not aware whether the construction of new classrooms will be financed through capitation or NGCDF, therefore increasing the anxiety and problems for planning by school heads.
KEPSHA is calling on the Ministry of Education to expedite the disbursal of the promised money, failure to which is likely to ensure activities in schools grind to a halt. The association is also appealing to the government to quickly resolve the NEMIS challenges and ensuring record-keeping accuracy. Besides, KEPSHA wants the government to clarify the funding for the construction of new classrooms to effectively transition JSS students to Grade 9.