A private primary school in Nairobi has announced closure days before the Kenya Certificate of Primary Education (KCPE) commences.
The school, Eastend Junior Academy, sent a notice to parents and guardians, informing them about the closure ‘for good’.
In the notice, the directors cited an unsupportive business environment in the country as the reason for the closure.
In addition, the statement said that the harsh business environment “ is exerting a lot of pressure on the Directors and because of their age, they have opted to retire and close the school from next year.”
According to the notice, the directors "... are both over 70 years old and would like to take this opportunity to thank you for the support that you have given to the above school".
The school was founded in 1993, with the first KCPE done in 2000.
The announcement of closure comes days before the KCPE which is set to start on October 30.
The directors assured parents that the office would remain open to provide any assistance required.
Reliving the better days of the school, the notice also cited, "Since it started the Directors have devoted their time and resources in order to make it what it is today.
Statistics from the Economic Survey of 2023 indicate that more than 7,000 private schools have permanently been closed over the past four years, since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020.
In 2022, around 967 private schools were closed, while those that remained in operation have had to increase school fees in order to survive.
During the peak of the pandemic, the government announced a stimulus facility to aid private schools in repaying loans.
However, the stimulus funds did not materialize, leading to some schools turning to commercial banks with stringent lending terms.
