- Education stakeholders in Baringo want ECDE management transferred from county governments back to the national government.
- They cite inadequate infrastructure, teacher shortages, poor remuneration and delayed salaries as major challenges affecting the sector.
- The stakeholders say placing ECDE under TSC and the Ministry of Education could promote uniform management and better teacher welfare.
Some education stakeholders in Baringo have intensified pressure for the transfer of Early Childhood Development Education (ECDE) management from county governments back to the national government.
The stakeholders made the call during a public participation forum on six proposed education reform Bills held at the Kenya School of Government, Baringo Campus, in Kabarnet town.
They cited a myriad of challenges facing ECDE, including inadequate infrastructure, shortage of teaching staff, poor remuneration and delays in payment of teachers, which they said were undermining the quality of foundational education in the county.
Led by Kenya National Union of Teachers Koibatek Branch Executive Secretary Francis Bundotich, the stakeholders accused county governments, particularly Baringo, of failing to adequately manage ECDE centres across the county’s 30 wards.
Bundotich, who spoke during the forum chaired by Baringo North MP Joseph Makilap, said the sector was grappling with severe infrastructure deficits and inadequate resources.
He said returning the management of ECDE to the national government would enable TSC to uniformly register, employ and manage ECDE teachers under centralised standards.
“Let pre-primary school be taken over from the county to the TSC and Ministry of Education so that it can be managed better alongside Primary and Junior School under a comprehensive model,” he said.
The forum was also attended by Lugari MP Nabii Nabwera, Kibra MP Peter Orero, Teso South MP Mary Emase and Moiben MP Prof Phyllis Bartoo.
Stakeholders raise teacher welfare concerns
Bundotich also raised concern over shortages of ECDE teachers and inadequate welfare, arguing that the current arrangement had created disparities in the management and working conditions of teachers.
His views were supported by parents’ representative Reuben Chepsongol, who outlined the challenges facing parents and teachers in ECDE centres across the county.
Chepsongol said many parents, particularly those in lowland areas, struggled to meet costs associated with enrolling their children in ECDE programmes and providing food.
He said the challenges had contributed to poor learner retention in some centres.
The former Bartabwa Ward Member of the County Assembly called for the national government to take back the function, saying this would also help improve teachers’ remuneration.
He said ECDE teachers were earning low wages, which were sometimes paid late despite working in difficult environments and supporting families dependent on their incomes.
“We need a system that guarantees better remuneration and timely payment for ECDE teachers because they are providing the foundation upon which the rest of the education system is built,” Chepsongol said.
Makilap urged the stakeholders to pursue their demands through the appropriate constitutional channels, noting that changing the allocation of functions between the two levels of government would require a constitutional process.
He encouraged the stakeholders to continue making their views known through public participation forums, saying their contributions would help legislators assess the proposed reforms.
READ ALSO: KNUT wants TSC to take over employment of ECDE teachers from counties
Makilap also commended the stakeholders for their contributions to the six education reform Bills, which he said were aimed at transforming the country’s education sector.
By Kimutai Langat
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