The Ministry of Education announced intentions to prosecute exam cheats through special courts that have been constituted in bid to contain examination malpractices.
Making the announcement Education Cabinet Secretary Julius Ogamba noted the courts will arbitrate in cases of exams malpractices.
The CS who spoke hours before the kick-off of the written Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) and Kenya Primary Education Equity in Learning (KPEEL) Program stated that the government has already marked out exam irregularities hotspots.
The Ministry, according to CS Migos has a plan to apply deterrent measures which include special security features in exam papers.
Additionally, a multi-agency team is on high alert while improved communication will be a priority to effectively coordinate examinations across the country.
“As a ministry we are well prepared with all the multi-agency that we have in place from the government, because we are approaching this as a whole government to ensure we deliver a credible examination where malpractices are not allowed at all,” CS Julius Ogamba averred.
He further sounded a warning to people planning to engage in any malpractices that they will face the full force of the law. At the same time, he assured Kenyans that the government will deliver credible examinations.
“We are assuring Kenyans that should we as a ministry, as a government, get anybody involved in the malpractice, we will deal with them thoroughly. We will ensure they get the proper penalty they deserve,” he warned.
This comes as the 2024 KCSE exams officially kicked off on Tuesday, October 22. According to the Ministry, this year’s exams will take place in 10,755 centres across the country.
A total of 965,501 candidates will sit for the national exams. The figure is an increase from 903,138 candidates who sat for the KCSE exams in 2023.
It is the first year since the Kenya Certificate of Primary Education (KCPE) was phased out and replaced with the competency-based curriculum (CBC) structure which adopts the 2-6-6-3 approach where learners will spend 2 years in pre-primary, 6 years in primary, 6 years in secondary school with those who proceeding to university taking 3 years.
The Kenya Primary School Education Assessment (KPSEA) and Kenya Intermediate Level Education Assessment (KILEA) were scheduled to start from October 28 to October 31. Afterwards, learners will enjoy a two-month December holiday that will run from October 28 to January 3, 2025.
