The High Court in Kakamega has dismissed a petition seeking to compel the government to introduce Kiswahili and indigenous languages as alternative languages of instruction and assessment in schools.
In a judgment delivered on November 9, 2026, Justice Stephen Mbungi dismissed a case filed by education rights advocate Ernest Achesa Makhambala, ruling that he had failed to demonstrate that the country's existing language policy violated children's constitutional rights.
Makhambala had challenged the use of English as the primary language of instruction and national assessment from Grade 4 to Grade 12, arguing that the policy disadvantages learners with limited English proficiency, particularly children from rural communities.
He had asked the court to compel the Ministry of Education and the Kenya Institute of Curriculum Development (KICD) to progressively introduce Kiswahili and indigenous languages as alternative languages of instruction and assessment.
The petitioner also challenged the classification of indigenous languages as non formal learning activities in Grades 4 to 9, arguing that the move undermined their constitutional recognition and development.
However, Justice Mbungi ruled that while the Constitution recognises the importance of promoting indigenous languages, it does not require the government to make them compulsory languages of instruction in all schools.
The judge noted that English and Kiswahili are Kenya's official languages and that the constitutional obligation to promote indigenous languages does not mean that every local language must be adopted as a medium of instruction.
"It is impracticable to expect that every child can be brought in their own mother tongue as the Petitioner put it," the judge observed.
The court further found that Makhambala had failed to demonstrate how the government's language policy denied children their constitutional right to free and compulsory basic education under Article 53.
On the use of indigenous languages in early childhood education, the judge said the absence of approved textbooks in local languages did not amount to a prohibition against teaching children in their mother tongues.
He pointed out that existing laws allow schools to use a child's preferred language where reasonably practicable.
Justice Mbungi also faulted the petitioner for failing to identify specific considerations that education authorities had overlooked when developing the curriculum or demonstrate that retaining English as the main language of instruction was unreasonable.
The court consequently dismissed the petition, finding that the alleged constitutional violations had not been established.
The ruling leaves the existing language policy governing instruction and national assessments in schools unchanged.
The court's decision comes against the backdrop of growing concerns over the implementation of Kenya's language of instruction policy, particularly in early childhood and lower primary education.
A study conducted by researchers led by Professor Peter Kigwilu of the United States International University Africa (USIU Africa) found that English has largely displaced mother tongue instruction in early grade classrooms.
The research, titled "Bridging the Policy Practice Gap: An Investigation of Language Practices, Teacher Adoption of Pedagogy, and Their Combined Impact on Early Grade Literacy in Kenya," identified a shortage of local language learning materials, limited instructional time and overcrowded classrooms as major barriers to implementing the policy.
The findings also revealed that many teachers have limited understanding of the government's language of instruction policy, which provides for the use of the language spoken in a school's catchment area, including mother tongues and other local languages, during the early years of learning.
The researchers presented their findings during a stakeholder validation and policy briefing meeting held at USIU Africa in August 2026.
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