Informal schools risk closure by tough rules

About 2.6 million children attending low-cost elementary schools in slums and rural areas could be shut out of school after the Education ministry released tough guidelines on the operation of the schools.

The guidleines require that at least 50% of the teachers in the schools should have a government recognised certificate and be registered by the Teachers Service Commission.

Anthony Mugodo, director of legal services at Bridge International Academies, yesterday said the guidelines are silent on the compliance timeline.

Bridge International has a chain of low-cost non-formal schools.

"The new guidelines gives institutions zero timeline to comply and raised the percentage that virtually no APBET institution will be
compliant and will be at risk of closure," Mugodo said.

He said they met ministry officials in March and agreed that each school should have 33 per cent of its teachers registered with TSC in three years.

Mugodo said the ministry however published a different guideline without consulting stakeholders.

He said the guidelines do not apply countrywide, but only stipulate application in seven former colonial municipalities: Nairobi, Kisumu, Mombasa, Nakuru, Kisumu, Kitale, Eldoret and Thika.

"This excludes thousands of pockets of poverty in swathes of the country and important rural and newly urbanising areas," Mugodo said.

The operation of the schools is not captured in the Basic Education Act.

Mugodo spoke at a luncheon with National Assembly majority leader Aden Duale and Education Committee members at Intercontinental Hotel, Nairobi.

Kenya Independent Schools Association chairman George Mikwa said they have written to Education Cabinet Secretary Jacob Kaimenyi three times over the matter, but have not received a response.

Duale said he will convene a meeting with the committee, Kaimenyi and PS Belio Kipsang to have the Basic Education Act amended to incorporate the schools.

"This is a very easy thing to do. Let the committee bring the amendments to the Act in Parliament and I promise I will personally push to to have it passed in the House," he said.

 Kibra MP Ken Okoth, a member of the committee, said the schools have helped thousands of poor children in his constituency and will strive to have the amendments pass.

Reference : www.the-star.co.ke