NAIROBI, Kenya -Lawmakers are advocating for primary, junior, and secondary schools to be permitted to impose additional levies to counter a severe capitation deficit that has left many institutions struggling to operate effectively.
Appearing before the National Assembly Education Committee, Principal Secretary for Basic Education, Belio Kipsang, acknowledged the funding shortfall, warning that without urgent intervention, schools would continue facing financial constraints.
“For years, the education sector has grappled with inadequate capitation funding, forcing school heads to operate under difficult circumstances,” Kipsang said.
“Our only recourse is to present a supplementary budget to Parliament, as we have done today, in the hope that this House will respond appropriately and allocate adequate funding to enable us to meet our commitments to students,”he added.
Kipsang disclosed that while the ideal capitation per student in public day schools should be KSh 22,224 per year, the government only allocates KSh 17,000 per student. This gap has placed immense strain on school administrators, with many institutions struggling to stay operational.
At the junior secondary level, the situation is even worse. The government allocated KSh 30 billion for the current financial year, despite schools requiring KSh 46 billion, resulting in a KSh 16 billion shortfall. Primary schools are also underfunded, with a KSh 1.2 billion deficit, further complicating efforts to provide quality education.
“The government is currently using a block funding approach instead of calculating capitation by multiplying the allocated amount per child by the total number of students,” Kipsang explained.
Despite these financial constraints, Kipsang confirmed that the Ministry of Education had disbursed 25% of the capitation funds at the start of the year, with the National Treasury committing to release another 25% by mid-term, bringing total disbursements to 50% of the allocated funds.
“To ensure that schools remained operational, we released an initial 25 percent of the funds with a commitment that by the middle of the term, we would disburse the remaining 25 percent,” he stated.
The Education Committee pressed Kipsang over the discrepancy between budgeted and disbursed capitation funds, questioning why the government continues to allocate KSh 22,000 per student while disbursing significantly less.
MPs voiced frustrations over the slow release of funds, arguing that many schools were facing operational difficulties.
Some lawmakers suggested allowing schools to impose extra levies, while others urged the Ministry to be transparent about the actual funding gap and plan accordingly.
Kitutu Masaba MP Clive Gisairo challenged the Ministry’s budgeting inconsistencies asking the Ministry of Education to be transparent.
“Out of the 17,000 per child, you are saying you have only disbursed Sh 3,000. Please tell us which figures do you use to budget at the start of the year? Do you use Sh 22,000 or Sh 17,000?”
Kibra MP Peter Orare proposed an immediate policy change to allow schools to charge additional fees to address funding gaps.
“Let the schools be allowed to charge extra levies so that they can meet the deficit,” he said.
Committee Chair Julius Melly (Tinderet MP) urged the Ministry to stop basing budgets on unrealistic projections, arguing that Kenyans should be informed of the actual shortfall in school funding.
“You normally give us a proposed budget of Sh 74 billion, but you get 54 billion. Can you be using 54 billion to budget so that Kenyans can know we have a shortfall?” Melly questioned.
“That’s why we are telling you, PS, you should put in place a strong case—not to increase the amount but to get the full allocation. There is a petition before this committee stating that the government is now funding secondary school students at Sh 17,000,”he added.
Some MPs expressed concern over the direct impact of delayed capitation on students, stating that head teachers had no choice but to send learners home due to financial constraints.
“The problem we are facing in the constituencies and counties is that money has not reached schools, and therefore, principals cannot manage school operations. As a result, they are sending students home because capitation funds have not been disbursed in the right amounts,”Kasipul Kabondo MP said.
The capitation crisis has been exacerbated by a recent policy declaration from the National Treasury, which ruled that unpaid capitation funds from previous financial years should not be classified as government debt. This means that schools cannot expect to receive any pending funds, further deepening their financial challenges.
MPs criticized the move, warning that it could push schools into deeper financial distress, as many had budgeted with the expectation that outstanding capitation funds would eventually be disbursed.
Luanda MP Dick Maungu questioned the legal basis of the pronouncement, asking whether it was a binding policy directive or merely a political statement.
“Do you think as an accounting officer this pronouncement will create financial instability for your department? Because head teachers across the country have been expecting this money to be released. The Treasury CS has now declared that it should not be treated as a debt. Was that a formal declaration or just a political pronouncement?” Maungu asked.
In response, a Ministry official acknowledged the reality of the situation, explaining that the government operates on a cash accounting system, meaning that funds not disbursed within a financial year are not carried forward.
“I think that’s just the reality. Government is on cash accounting, so he was saying as long as we are on cash accounting, whatever was not remitted in the financial year is not carried forward,” Kipsang clarified.
