Kwale Governor Fatuma Achani has solicited support from education stakeholders and development partners to bring about the desired change in the education sector.
Speaking when she received in her office the area County Director of Education (CDE) Ahmed Abdi, the governor sought the cooperation of stakeholders in improving the standards of education.
She has pledged to improve the standard of education through the “Elimu Ni Sasa’ bursary scheme.
“Our deliberations centered on matters of education, specifically on how the Ministry of Education can collaborate with the devolved government in efforts to improve education standards in Kwale,” she said after meeting the education official.
Governor Achani pledged to cooperate fully with the office of the CDE in efforts to turn the fortunes of education in the coastal county around.
She revealed that the county government has operationalized over 548 Early Childhood Development Education (ECDE) centers in a child-friendly safe environment.
Achani says the ECDE centres across the six sub-counties have been put up since the inception of devolution in 2013.
She said the devolved unit was looking at improving the welfare and needs of the ECDE teachers besides prioritizing the development of the education sector through increased budgetary allocation.
The Governor also said the county has employed over 900 ECDE teachers on permanent and pensionable terms since the coming of devolution a decade ago.
Flanked by the County Executive Committee member for Education Mishi Mwakaole, Achani has called upon all the stakeholders to work together in tandem towards the improvement of education standards in the county.
The county boss reiterated her administration’s commitment to improving the standards of education saying the provision of quality education was a basic human right as enshrined in the constitution.
She said already the devolved unit has already increased the annual county bursary funding from Sh 400 million to Sh 500 million this financial year.
“We have 20 administrative wards and each ward currently receives Sh 25 million as bursary kitty for needy students in colleges and high school,” she said adding that the scheme offers full scholarships to students who score good KCPE and KCSE grades and help them pursue higher education.
Achani says the Elimu ni Sasa bursary initiative started in 2013 continues to transform the educational standards in the region.
“Education prepares our children for the responsibilities of citizenship and development and that education delivery was an imperative for the knowledge-based driven economy,” she said.
She went further:” The bursary scheme is a boon to our students facing financial hardships countywide”.
Mr. Abdi welcomed the county’s Elimu Ni Sasa bursary scheme noting that it will in the long run improve performance in local schools.
The CDE said the bursary scheme will help address school dropout rates among financially disadvantaged students, especially with the current hard economic conditions.
“We welcome the efforts by the county government to position our education sector as the engine for social and economic growth and prosperity,” he said.
By Hussein Abdullahi
