By Collins Akong’o
Mwambolembole Primary School that was started in 1943 now risks being closed because it has the lowest number of learners in Taita Taveta County.
According to the school head teacher Johnson Mwadime, the enrollment has reduced from 67 pupils in 2014 to the current 39.
He attributed the situation to the increasing school drop-out rate caused by drug abuse among students.
“Currently we have nine KCPE candidates, three pupils in class seven pupils while classes 6, 5 and 4 have six, four and three pupils respectively.
He added that they also have five pupils in grade three, six in grade two and three in grade one.
Mwambolembole Primary has seven teachers posted by TSC and two teachers employed by the school’s board of management.
The head teacher revealed that due to overwhelming challenges, the school lacks good infrastructure, teaching materials and a playing ground.
The school does not get any Constituency Development Funds (CDF) money for renovation of classes due to its low enrollment.
The deputy head teacher Alphone Mwanyika said the poverty stricken community has also contributed to the dwindling enrollment.
“Only 25 parents have brought their children to school and yet we receive very little allocation from the Ministry of Education under free primary education programme which forces us to ask for assistance from parents,” he said.
“The number of learners in the school have been reducing as the years go by and right now I only have three pupils,” said Esther Makumbo, a teacher at the school.
She expressed fears that the school might be heading to closure due to the continuing dropout rate.
With small number of pupils, a teacher gets hard time in perfecting the syllables which needs grouping of pupils in class.
“The small number has also affected performance due to lack of competition in class,” Taita Taveta County Director of Education Simon Wanjohi said.
He however assured parents that the government was in the process of handling the situation.
“We cannot just close the school until we are assured that the pupils will be able to access education in the neighboring schools,” Wanjohi added.
Wanjohi said many schools in Mbololo and Rong’e areas of Voi and Mwatate were suffering from low enrollment due to sparse population.
