The Ministry of Education (MoE) has released funds for the Free Day Secondary Education (FDSE) for the third term of 2025 and the first quarter of the 2025/2026 Financial Year.
In a circular copied to Education Cabinet Secretary, Acting TSC CEO, Directors, School Audit Services and all regional Directors of Education, State Department for Basic Education, Principal Secretary Prof. Julius Bitok, confirmed that the government has disbursed Ksh3, 094.92 per student.
He added that the disbursement amount was based on the student enrolment data extracted from the National Education Management Information System (NEMIS) on April 22, 2025.
The amount is divided into two main accounts, Tuition and Operations. Ksh868.80 is allocated for Tuition, where, Ksh828.80 will go towards teaching and learning materials and a further Ksh40.00 remitted to the SMASSE.
MoE also indicated that the Operations account is allocated Ksh2,226.12, which is broken down into various vote heads. Ksh600 for Maintenance and Improvement. Other operational costs, including personnel emoluments, internet connectivity, and administrative costs, are allocated Ksh1,099.43. An amount of Ksh210.00 is designated for co-curricular activities, while Ksh230.00 is for medical and insurance. Additionally, Ksh86.69 per learner has been remitted to the Kenya Education Management Institute (KEMI).
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MoE outlined strict requirements for school principals to ensure accountability for the funds stating that schools are mandated to acknowledge receipt of the funds within two weeks by issuing official school receipts and uploading a copy to NEMIS. Schools are also required to have individual students sign form-lists that show their admission numbers and the amount they have been awarded.
Bitok warned that “failure to acknowledge funds within the stipulated time will lead to the suspension of further grants.”
In order to make it easier to retrieve records related to the schools, heads of institutions are required to clearly indicate the school’s Unique Institutional Code (UIC) on all correspondence sent to the Ministry of Education.
County and Sub-County Directors of Education are required to monitor the accuracy of enrolment data on NEMIS.
Bitok stated that “recovery will be instituted for any school that is found to have an enrolment less than the one used in this disbursement.”
The MoE circular also directs that Maintenance and Improvement funds (KShs. 600) must be transferred from the operations account to the infrastructure account within 15 days of receipt, as per the Auditor-General’s directive, to ensure transparency and proper management of funds for infrastructure development.
Separately, Bitok also instructed schools to ensure all parents register their children under the new Social Health Authority (SHA) universal medical scheme.
By Masaki Enock
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