Private Schools Seek Govt Bailout as Pandemic Bites

Private schools have appealed to the government for assistance amidst the financial crunch occasioned by the Covid-19 pandemic.

A report published by the Sunday Nation on Sunday April 12, indicated that the schools would be unable to pay teachers and other members of their staff by the end of the month.

Kenya Private Schools Association chair, Peter Ndoro, while speaking on Saturday, April 11, stated that many private schools stood the risk of closure if financial assistance was not forthcoming.

Kenya Private Schools Association official Mutheu Kasanga (left) and Chair Peter Ndoro address journalists during the association’s Directors’ Meeting at Noble Hotel in Eldoret town on October 15, 2015.

Daily Nation

"Private schools entirely depend on the school fees paid by parents meaning if the pandemic continues, most of these schools will cease to exist. Already things are very difficult on our side as since the beginning of March we have not received any income from our clients," stated Ndoro.

He added that the schools had already begun making appeals to the government for financial aid that would keep the institutions afloat during the pandemic.

In line with this, the association had developed a memorandum to be presented to the Ministry of Education.

Ndoro stated that some private institutions would not be able to pay the month's rent for the premises they were leasing.

Some schools had opted to ask their staff to take compulsory unpaid leave to cushion themselves against the effects of the pandemic.

A teacher in one of the prominent private schools situated in the outskirts of the city who spoke to Kenyans.co.ke on the condition of anonymity confirmed that they had been pushed to take unpaid leave.

"We've been sent on unpaid leave but we are still expected to conduct online classes. The administration claimed that that the reason was that the school runs on school fees," she said. 

Education Cabinet Secretary George Magoha at KNEC Offices in Nairobi on December 18, 2019

Simon Kiragu

Kenyans.co.ke

There are more than 1,932 private secondary schools and in excess of 8,000 private primary schools across the country.

Most of these cater to the middle class who can afford the significantly higher fees charged. 

For the upper echelons of society, international schools are preferred with Nairobi playing host to 32 of these.

Most are located in Karen, Westlands, Runda and along Lang'ata Road.