The Teachers’ Service Commission (TSC) has been allocated more cash to recruit 5,000 teachers.
National Treasury Cabinet Secretary Henry Rotich allocated the commission Sh3.2 billion, up from the Sh2 billion that had been indicated in May.
It is a major boost to education, which is facing an acute shortage of teachers.
The government’s implementation of the 100 per cent transition from primary to secondary school policy has put immense pressure on the country’s 317, ooo teachers.
The commission plans to recruit 5,000 secondary teachers in the new financial year and replace 60 at the tertiary level as it seeks to achieve a 40:1 student=teacher ratio in primary schools.
The CS said the education sector continues to receive the lion’s share of funds as the government continues to provide access to basic education and higher education as well as skills development and training.
However, the allocation is not enough to satisfy the annual demand for 12,626 teachers the commission had requested.
Nevertheless, the increment comes at a time when the sector is undergoing major reforms, including the implementation of the Competency-based Curriculum (CBC). The teachers’ employer intends to improve staff capacity by training 50,000 teachers.
It intends to broaden the training by including topics such as good governance, teaching standards, professionalism and integrity. The teachers will also be empowered to comply with their code of regulations and code of conduct and ethics, with the commission hoping this will reduce the number of disciplinary cases.
Mr Rotich also allocated Sh55.4 billion for free day secondary education and Sh13.4 billion for free primary education.
Other allocations include Sh1.5 billion for primary and secondary school infrastructure, Sh10.3 billion for vocational training, Sh6.8 billion for the construction and equipping of technical schools.
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