The Government is set to construct a total of 11,600 classrooms in 7,074 public secondary schools across the country by April 2022 to prepare for transition of the pioneer Competency Based Curriculum (CBC) learners to Junior Secondary School in 2023.
The Cabinet Secretary for Education, Prof. George Magoha said the government has allocated Sh. 8 billion into the Infrastructure Expansion Program to be undertaken by the local contractors.
He noted that the multi-Agency team for Coordination and Implementation of National Government Projects has delivered in the past where local suppliers were contracted to make desks and the ministry is not re-inventing the wheel but instead riding on past success.
The CS made the remarks during a joint meeting of the Ministry of Education with the Ministry of Interior and Coordination of National Government that involved Regional Commissioners, County Commissioners, Regional Directors of Education and County Directors of Education from the 47 Counties on CBC Infrastructure Development Program at the Kenya School of Government, Nairobi.
“All of us are here to ensure the success of CBC and we must prepare ourselves by ensuring the learning facilities are adequate to accommodate the learners during the transition into Junior Secondary in 2023,” he said, adding that the government is implementing the projects to enable children across the country benefit from quality education.
Speaking at the event, Cabinet Secretary for Interior and Coordination of National Government, Dr. Fred Matiang’i expressed his support of the CBC Infrastructure Expansion Program and challenged the multi-agency team to coordinate to start preparations in order to complete the programme within the stipulated time frames.
He emphasized on the need to support and drive the President’s agenda for championing the advancement of the new education system which is responsive to the demands of the modern world.
The CS directed the Chiefs and their Assistants to oversee the construction of classrooms in their jurisdiction for smooth flow of activities, and stressed that contractors of the project be paid through mobile money transfer services to save the government from losing money through fraud and corruption.
Present at the event was the Ministry of Education Chief Administrative Secretary, Dr. Sarah Ruto, Principal Secretaries for State Department for Early Learning and Basic Education, Dr. Julius Jwan and State Department for Implementation of Curriculum Reforms, Prof. Fatuma Chege and the Multi-Agency Technical Committee.
By Kwamboka Cynthia and Bernadette Khaduli
