President William Ruto on Thursday announced that the government is set to employ an additional 20,000 teachers in January in an effort to curb the teacher-learner ratio gap.
Speaking at the Gold Award Presentation of the Presidential Awards Scheme, the Head of State noted that the recruitment will ensure that all Kenyans, especially those from rural areas and informal urban settlements, have access to quality education.
"Many schools across Kenya continue to have gaps in education. This denies many children the opportunities to become their best," he told the delegates.
Ruto further noted that Kenya’s greatest asset is its human capital and that there is a great need to continuously sharpen it through education, training, knowledge acquisition, and skills development.
“Having been a Cabinet Minister for Higher Education before, I know the value of education and the importance of making sure that we have deployed every resource available to make sure we get our education right," he added.
He noted that the government has so far made a significant investment in the education sector in the country and singled out the increased revenue pumped into the Ministry of Education.
“In my tenure, the education budget has increased by Ksh127 billion and as the government, we are committed to providing more resources to university and technical education through the new student-centered funding model.”
Aside from the hiring of the new teachers, the President also announced that the 46,000 Junior Secondary School teachers, who are currently serving as interns, will be hired on permanent and pensionable terms.
This new move came after the President earlier this year postponed the planned appointment of the teachers citing budgetary constraints occasioned by the withdrawal of the 2024 Finance Bill.
“I had a plan to employ 20,000 teachers this year but I am suspending it until next year when we can reassess how our economy is doing,” said Ruto.
Together with the appointment of the teachers, President Ruto also underscored the government’s resolve to improve the state of Kenya’s universities, and technical and vocational colleges.
“We will continue to engage with our universities, and TVETs to expand opportunities, to create new programs that will support our children.”
