Kenyan schools might be looking at an increased dose of Spanish lessons, Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi has said.
The PCS revealed this new development after a meeting with Diego Martínez Belío, Secretary of State for Foreign and Global Affairs of the Kingdom of Spain, on Wednesday, July 9.
In the meeting, Mudavadi cited Kenya’s strong relations with Spain, particularly in the European country’s continued support through the Foreign Service Academy, which he noted has empowered Kenyan diplomats with Spanish language and cultural skills.
Mudavadi informed that this was the driving factor behind plans to make Spanish more prevalent in Kenyan schools, improving its access and possibly its addition to the Kenyan education curriculum.
“As part of the efforts to deepen the longstanding ties between Kenya and Spain, I held fruitful talks with Mr. Diego Martínez Belío, Secretary of State for Foreign and Global Affairs of the Kingdom of Spain,” the PCS stated.
“Building on this, we looked at expanding collaboration with the Ministry of Education to make Spanish more accessible in our schools,” Mudavadi added.
Currently, despite being an optional course, Spanish is not listed as a core subject in Kenya’s Competency-Based Education (CBE) curriculum. Historically, the main foreign language offered in public secondary schools has been French.
While there has been a strong push for a broader range of foreign languages, Spanish has not been as widely adopted as an examinable subject in the national curriculum across all public schools.
In the CBE curriculum, learners are only able to focus on foreign languages such as Spanish during senior school (Grades 10-12). In the Senior School, learners choose pathways, and within the Social Sciences Pathway, specifically the "Languages and Literature" track, learners can choose optional subjects.
Aside from the collaboration in education, Mudavadi disclosed that the two countries would cooperate in other strategic areas such as tourism, agriculture, and technology.
Further, the PCS noted the country was looking into tapping into Madrid’s iconic Mercado de San Miguel, a fresh food market that combines modern amenities like conference spaces, banking, and family-friendly services.
“Such a model aligns perfectly with President William Ruto’s vision to develop world-class markets that showcase Kenyan products locally and globally,” Mudavadi stated.
