A new Board of Management (BOM) for Kwale County’s first teacher training college which is under construction has been inaugurated.
Training for tutors which is expected to be in line with the new Competency-Based Curriculum (CBC) is set to be rolled out next year.
The pioneer members of the governing body under the chairmanship of veteran educationist Hamisi Mwasiwa and accompanied by the local County Director of Education (CDE) Jane Njogu on Wednesday paid a courtesy call on Governor Salim Mvurya.
The inauguration of the new board by the state department of education follows a visit to the college last week by a high-powered delegation led by Education Cabinet Secretary Professor George Magoha.
Mvurya who was flanked by his deputy Fatuma Achani said his administration has so much trust in the new board that it will deliver quality service and implement long-term educational reforms for the good of society.
The county boss said his regional government will continue to offer support to the board and the college fraternity to ensure that they ‘exercise their mandate with integrity’.
He said the Sh300 million upcoming college is expected to be operational in 2021 ready to begin training primary school teachers and offer Early Childhood Development and Education (ECDE) courses.
The governor asked local secondary school leavers with a passion to pursue a career in teaching to take advantage of the college when it opens its doors to further their educational pursuits.
Mvurya at the same time urged area residents to put a value on the education of their children noting it was the only way to empower people economically.
He decried that many parents in the area did not take the education of their children seriously a situation he said will perpetuate the backwardness in the foreseeable future if not remedied.
The governor regretted that many parents and guardians have abdicated their responsibilities and took little interest in the education of their children a situation he said that resulted in the widespread abuse of drugs and substances by the youth in the region.
Mvurya said formal education is critical in the fight against poverty, diseases and social ills like drug abuse among the youth.
“Investment in education is the single most important investment parents can ever make to their children,” he said.
He advised parents to invest their resources in educating their children instead of wasting it on worthless ventures.
Kwale College will be the second public Teachers Training College (TTC) in the coast region after the Shanzu College in Mombasa.
The BoM comprises of Hamisi Mwasiwa (chairman), Hellen Machuka (college principal), Mangale Munga, Tsuma Nzai, Beatrice Mumbi, Charity Tinga, John Yatta, Sharifa Mohamed and Khadija Mwaroho.
By Hussein Abdullahi
