NAIROBI, Kenya — President William Ruto has announced the devolution of bursary allocation and distribution, saying the national government has resolved disputes that had stalled the release of education funds to county governments.
Speaking at State House during the UDA National Governing Council meeting on Monday, January 26, Ruto said consultations involving the Controller of Budget, county governments and other stakeholders had unlocked the impasse that delayed bursary disbursement.
The President said that while bursaries are constitutionally anchored under the national government, structured cooperation with county administrations was necessary to ensure effective implementation at the grassroots.
“We have resolved the matter. The process of bursaries will now be actualised since the agreement between the national government and county governments has been concluded,” Ruto said.
He added that the agreements now allow the Controller of Budget to approve the disbursement of funds to counties for onward allocation to learners.
Ruto said the decision was guided by the need to ensure no child drops out of school due to lack of fees, reaffirming the government’s commitment to education access and equity.
The announcement follows months of tension between the national government, the Controller of Budget, and county administrations over who holds the mandate to issue bursaries, particularly for secondary schools and tertiary institutions.
The Controller of Budget had previously maintained that bursaries for higher education institutions fall under the national government, arguing that counties lacked a clear legal framework to administer the funds. Counties, however, insisted that they were best placed to identify needy learners and manage bursary schemes at the local level.
The dispute resulted in the delayed disbursement of funds, leaving thousands of learners uncertain about school fees support at the start of the academic year.
In response, President Ruto had earlier directed the Ministry of Education to work with the Council of Governors to develop a framework to resolve the standoff and align bursary management with constitutional and public finance rules.
A breakthrough came after the President assented to the County Allocation of Revenue Act, 2025, which raised the equitable share allocated to counties to Sh415 billion. The additional funding was intended to give counties fiscal space to design and implement local programmes, including bursary schemes.
The agreement reached now clears the way for counties to issue bursaries once the Controller of Budget formally approves the release of funds.
Education stakeholders have long argued that devolving bursary administration would improve efficiency, reduce duplication, and curb political interference, while critics have raised concerns about accountability and uniformity.
Ruto said safeguards had been built into the framework to ensure transparency and proper use of public funds, noting that the national government will continue to provide oversight.
With the agreements finalised, counties are expected to move swiftly to operationalise bursary disbursement and release funds to learners across the country.
The move marks a significant shift in education financing and is expected to ease pressure on households struggling with rising education costs.
