The Government through the Ministry of Interior and National Administration has clarified that the main reason why fee payment is being shifted to the eCitizen platform is to harmonize the collection of school fees.
In a statement issued by the Principal Secretary (PS) in the State Department for Immigration and E-Citizen Services Prof. Julius Bitok, the process will be implemented in phases beginning with national schools and subsequently extending to extra and county schools.
“The Government through the Ministry of Education has directed all National schools to submit their banking details to the Ministry to facilitate the payment of fees through eCitizen platform. The objective of this directive is to harmonize the collection of school fees, enhance the coordination of the process and promote transparency and accountability. It will also entrench an effective monitoring system on compliance with the relevant policies and regulations governing levying and payment of fees in public secondary schools,” said Prof. Bitok in the statement.
According to Prof. Bitok, the Directorate of eCitizen has set up a payment collection process that is convenient and transparent to ensure that secondary school Principals are able to promptly access the funds received and in full, adding that the implementation of the payment process through the platform will be undertaken in consultation with stakeholders.
“We are open to discussion and other inputs that will support the objective of the directive,” stated Bitok.
The Basic Education PS Dr. Belio Kipsang’ in a Circular dated January 31, 2024, instructed all National School Principals through the County Directors of Education (CDEs)to furnish the Ministry with their respective school bank details in particular the account name of their schools, bank, school account number, bank code, and branch code to reach the Director General in the Ministry of Education not later than February 6, 2024 to facilitate the process.
Former Kenya National Union of Teachers (KNUT) Secretary General Wilson Sossion lauded the move during an interview at a local TV station on Monday, Friday 5.
He expressed optimism that payment through the platform will reinforce transparency, adding that the one-stop transaction will help to eliminate all indirect charges that might have been illegally introduced by various institutions.
“This should not be difficult; parents can do their transactions through M-Pesa from wherever. It is a simple and convenient process and you will be able to log in the name of the student and the admission number against the fee payment,” he said.
The Directorate of eCitizen in partnership with the Information Communication Technology Authority (ICTA), Ministry of Information, Communication, and Digital Economy and the National Treasury has recently been coordinating the onboarding of all Government services onto the eCitizen platform to enhance service delivery.
By Education News Reporter
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