Radical measures need to be taken to address the challenges affecting the education sector.
Speaking Thursday during Nairobi Region Education Dialogue at Kenya Institute of Special Education (KISE), Education Cabinet Secretary Ezekiel Machogu challenged education stakeholders to collaborate since education is all inclusive.
“Education is in jeopardy and radical measures need to be taken to combat prevailing challenges through collaboration.” Said CS Machogu
The CS observed that through collaboration, education will be better including intervention by the Nairobi Governor Johnson Sakaja who was present at the dialogue by allocating un utilized land in the capital city county to build more schools.
Public schools are congested because there’s no land to build more schools accounting for only 30 percent of schools in Nairobi compared to 70 percent private schools.
This has forced parents to send their children to private schools for lack of other means but to place them anywhere to get an education since public schools are inadequate.
Machogu observed that the ministry is keen on the private schools to be registered and offer quality education to learners.
The CS lamented that most Nairobi children are not benefiting from the free primary education offered in public schools despite the government’s efforts.
CS Machogu said the academic performance in Nairobi lags behind due to poverty prompting child labour in which learners enroll in educational institutions and drop-out only to show up during exams hence affecting performance.
He cautioned parents and guardians against having children working than being in school calling on the national administrators to collaborate in ensuring all children are in school, free from drugs, illicit alcohol and disciplined.
By Joseph Kamolo Mutua
