The Kenya Publishers Association (KPA) on Sunday asked Education Cabinet Secretary Fred Matiang'i to honour an agreement made with them to lift the ban on schools buying textbooks from them.
The publishers noted that it had been a year since Dr Matiang'i issued the ban and it was now time to honour his promise of making a new books policy.
KPA pleaded with the Education CS after the Ministry of Education disbursed Sh3.5 Billion toward free primary and day secondary school education as schools resume for the second term.
"We are still waiting for that new policy. But now that they have sent money to schools, we request him to allow schools to buy books," noted Mr Lawrence Njagi, the new KPA Chairman.
The CS suspended the procurement of books by schools to allow for the ministry to review the distribution methods of textbooks to schools as a way of reducing theft of public funds.
Publishers have in the past accused booksellers of conspiring with school heads to steal cash meant for buying books under the free education programme.
Matiang'i also disbursed Sh5.5 Billion that will go towards building 2,000 new classrooms to increase the capacity of the current Form One places by 90,000, the construction of 1,000 science laboratories and a similar number of sanitary facilities.
