Heads of public primary and secondary schools who will be found charging extra levies which are not approved by the Education Cabinet Secretary will now be fined up to Ksh1 million if the newly proposed law will be passed by lawmakers.
The Basic Education Bill, 2024 which is part of the 11 newly drafted laws by the Ministry of Education which are meant to operationalize the recommendations of the Presidential Working Party on Education Reforms (PWPER), has provided that education in both public primary and secondary schools shall be free and will not charge or cause parents and guardians to pay tuition fees.
However, persons who are not Kenyan citizens will be required to pay tuition in public schools, with the Bill requiring any institution or person collecting any charges to issue an official receipt to that effect.
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The Bill also guarantees that no child shall be denied access to education due to unpaid fees.
“No child shall be barred from attending school because of failure to pay such charges contemplated under this section…A person who contravenes the provisions of this section commits an offence and is liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding one million shillings or to imprisonment for a period not exceeding three years or to both,” reads the Bill in part.
Education Ministry has in the past issued circulars warning head teachers against the practice, but schools remain non-compliant.
Headteachers will also be punished if they block learners from attending school based on bias of employment, religion, parental conflict or cultural practices or on any other ground.
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Schools will now not be required to discriminate against any child seeking admission on any ground, including ethnicity, gender, sex, religion, race, colour or social origin, age, disability, language or culture.
It will now be an offence for those parents who will not take their children to school since the Bill provides that it will be the responsibility of every parent or guardian to admit their children to a basic education institution.
“Where a parent or guardian defaults in the discharge of his or her responsibility under sub-section (1), such a parent or guardian shall be deemed to have committed an offence and is liable to fine not exceeding one hundred thousand or to a period not exceeding two years or to both,” reads the Bill.
By Roy Hezron
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