More than 90 percent of students in Siaya county have reported back to school since nationwide resumption of learning last week.
A team appointed by the president to monitor the operation back to school, led by Industrialization Principal Secretary Dr. Francis Owino and his Youth Affairs counterpart Julius Korir however expressed concern over the high number of school girls who were yet to resume studies after becoming pregnant during the nine-month break, occasioned by the outbreak of Coronavirus.
Addressing the media at Sinaga girls’ secondary school in Gem Yala Sub County Wednesday, during the end of the team’s two-day visit to Siaya, Dr. Owino said that early childhood development centres had recorded 99 percent resumption rate.
He said that primary schools were at 92 percent while secondary schools in the county had so far recorded 91.5 percent returns.
The Industrialization PS said that most girl’s secondary schools have been hit by early pregnancies, with one institution in Gem Yala Sub County recording a high of 14 such cases.
Dr. Owino said though a majority of the girls who became victims of early pregnancies had reported back to school, quite a number were yet to do so and he called parents and guardians to ensure that they all report back to their institutions.
At the same time, a few of them who are about to deliver are out there with a commitment that once they give birth, they will return to school, added the PS.
He also warned parents and guardians who fail to take their children back to school that they will have themselves to blame as the chiefs and law enforcement officers were under strict instructions to hunt down on such culprits and subject them to the laid down judicial process.
On his part, the Youth Affairs PS hailed the heads of institutions and the community at large for their efforts towards combating the spread of Coronavirus.
However, Korir said that there was more that the communities could do to help the schools cope with social distancing that remained a big challenge in most learning institutions.
“I urge communities, especially those neighbouring the schools to chip in with tents and other facilities,” he said, adding that with the fluctuating weather, most schools were having it rough coping with the new norm.
By Philip Onyango
