NAIROBI, Kenya, Jan 5- The Ministry of Education has called on School Administrators in public schools to utilize government funds prudently or risk prosecution.
Education Cabinet Secretary George Magoha warned that a stern action will be taken against anyone who will misuse funds meant for learners as schools reopened after a 10-month COVID-19 break.
“I have no plans to make extra money this year and nobody should have plans to do so. Therefore, the available money belongs to the learners and nobody should even smell it,” Magoha said Tuesday when he toured schools in Nyeri.
“I believe it is not about how much money the government give,” he said “ it is how it used and applied where it is required.”
He said he was impressed with the turnout so far and urged parents who are yet to take their children back to school to do so.
Schools were closed in March 2020 when the first case of COVID-19 was confirmed in the country, with partial re-opening done in October for Form 4, Class 8 candidates and Grade 4 pupils.
On Monday, millions of learners streamed back to school marking the resumption of learning across the country, with learners required to repeat their classes due to the lost academic year.
On Tuesday, Magoha said the ministry was working closely with the Ministry of Devolution to ensure some of the challenges faced by learners in various counties are sorted.
He said issues including resumption of food programs in various schools will be prioritised.
School learning programmes in counties such as Turkana are usually interrupted as children are severely affected by drought forcing the National and County government to intervene.
As schools resumed, emphasised the need for learners, teachers and other support staff to have masks on and maintain high hygiene standards to curb the spread of the virus.
“We are happy with the progress because schools have reopened, we want to emphasize to teachers to ensure that the COVID-19 protocols are followed,” he said Monday during a tour Olympic Primary School in Kibera, “we are also urging parents to assist us by ensuring that they are compliant with the regulations.”
On Sunday, President Uhuru Kenyatta directed County Health Departments to carry out routine surveillance for COVID-19 and other public health challenges in all schools including a random sampling of pupils, teachers, and support staff.
All teachers and learners were also required to wear “appropriate facemasks when on the school premises or within the school transport, in addition to applying hand-hygiene and physical spacing.”
