The government has released Free Primary Education (FPE) funds for the second term of the 2026 academic year, targeting tuition and operational costs in public primary schools.
Basic Education Principal Secretary, Prof. Julius Bitok, confirmed that the disbursement will benefit learners in all public basic education institutions across the country. Each learner has been allocated Ksh 95.25, with the funds already deposited into respective school accounts.
Bitok noted that the data used to calculate the disbursement was extracted from the National Education Management Information System (NEMIS) on November 25, 2024, and later verified by heads of institutions and Sub-County Directors of Education (SCDEs) during the third term of 2025.
County Directors of Education have been directed to immediately notify all public primary schools and head teachers within their jurisdictions to facilitate prompt utilization of the funds in line with ministry guidelines.
Schools are required to acknowledge receipt of the funds through the NEMIS platform without delay. Sub-County Directors of Education have also been tasked with regularly monitoring the use of the funds to ensure strict compliance with established guidelines.
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In cases of overfunding, schools must promptly notify the Principal Secretary through their respective SCDEs to initiate recovery of excess funds. Similarly, underfunded schools are required to report to SCDEs, who will compile and submit a list of affected institutions to the PS’s office for redress.
Headteachers have further been instructed to publicly display information on the received capitation grants on school notice boards.
Additionally, school budgets must be presented and discussed during Board of Management (BOM) meetings before any expenditure is undertaken.
The release of capitation funds will facilitate the seamless conduct of school activities in the new term, starting on April 27, 2026,
Earlier in January 2026, the government released Ksh 44.24 billion in capitation funds for the first term. Of this amount, senior schools received Ksh 26 billion, junior schools Ksh 14 billion, and primary schools Ksh 3.7 billion.
By Obegi Malack
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