The fate of thousands of learners with outstanding fee balances in public schools across the country remains uncertain due to the government’s delay in disbursing over Ksh48.3 billion in capitation funds owed to schools.
This situation has led to some learners being sent home by head teachers in public schools, who argue that they lack the funds to keep the students in school.
The chairman of the Kenya Secondary Schools Heads Association, Willy Kuria, has urged the government to release the pending capitation funds.
According to Kuria, some head teachers have been compelled to send students home due to outstanding school fee arrears.
Kuria further highlighted the dire situation faced by school heads, who were forced to close schools last year with outstanding arrears owed by the government.
He added that thousands of staff and support personnel working in these institutions remain unpaid as the government continues to delay disbursements.
According to the school heads, their decision to send students home despite the prevailing economic hardships is not made in bad faith but is seen as the only viable option left to them.
“The major problem here is that last year, schools were not given the full capitation, with a balance of Ksh7,000 per student out of the expected Ksh22,000,” Kuria explained.
“That money never came. This forced schools to close with significant debts, including salary arrears.”
A spot-check by Kenyans.co.ke revealed that many learners in public secondary schools have been sent home by their respective institutions.
Parents disclosed that school heads are demanding the clearance of outstanding fee balances, even for those who have already paid part of the first-term fees.
A parent at a school in Siaya County shared that her daughter was sent home despite paying Ksh5,000 of the required Ksh14,000 for the term.
“My daughter was sent home on the first day she reported. I sent her additional money on top of what I had already paid, but the principal still sent her away,” the parent revealed.
“The principal insisted that they had not received funding from the government and that the only way they could keep the children in school was if we cleared the remaining balances,” she added.
This situation persists as the future of thousands of learners remains uncertain, compounded by delays in bursary and scholarship allocations from the National Government Constituency Development Fund (NGCDF).
