CBC Crisis As Over 200,000 Students Yet To Join Junior Secondary School

Education Cabinet Secretary Ezekiel Machogu on Wednesday revealed that over 200,000 students were yet to join Junior Secondary School (JSS) because their parents were holding them back.

Education CS says a multi-agency team, which includes officers from the Interior Ministry, has launched a mop-up operation to ensure the students join their respective schools. Machogu added that many parents feared incurring costs while taking their children to school including fees and buying educational books.

The CS Machogu also fired a warning shot to parents attempting to illegally transfer their children from Grade 7 to Class 8. However, the CS reiterated that JSS education was free and compulsory for all students to ensure 100 percent transition, adding that parents would only contribute money for lunch.

The CS also instructed parents to allow their children who sat for the Kenya Certificate of Primary Education last year and were admitted to Form One and have not reported to their various schools to report immediately.

“More than 200,00 junior secondary school students have not reported to the school,’’ CS Machogu stated. The CS added that the Ministry of Education would take action against school officials demanding payments other than the ones stipulated by the government,” Machogu said.

“I want to clarify that Junior Secondary School is free and compulsory.  “No Principal, School Board, PTA, or other person is permitted to impose unauthorized levies in the name of registration fees,” Machogu added.

Moreover, the CS stated that learners’ books and teacher’s guides would be distributed across schools and parents had no obligation to buy books. A total of 17,893,270 copies of learners’ books and 423,514 copies of teachers’ guides will be distributed by the end of the exercise next week.

“The government of Kenya has disbursed a total of Sh3,164,365,856 billion which has purchased all the required books for Grade seven which again are free for all public Junior Secondary learners, and we have adequate books that will be given to each student,” he said.

The distribution schedule will run from January 30 and February 17, 2023. Additionally, headteachers had been advised to check the number of books supplied to their schools.

He warned parents and teachers against registering students who were meant to join JSS for the 2023 KCPE exams adding that they would not be allowed to sit for any exams other than the Competence Based Curriculum (CBC) exams.

“I want to tell any parent transferring their children from level seven to eight to sit for the KCPE exams that it will not be acceptable,” Machogu added.

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