The National Assembly Public Investments Committee on Governance and Education has raised concerns over financial management in national schools, including textbook distribution, long-standing fee arrears, school borrowing and procurement practices.
The committee, chaired by Luanda MP Hon. Dick Maungu, said some national schools had received hundreds of textbooks beyond their requirements, while others, particularly those in marginalised areas, continued to experience shortages.
The concerns emerged as the committee examined the Auditor-General’s reports covering the 2020/21 to 2024/25 financial years for a number of national schools during its retreat at the Royal Swiss Hotel in Kisumu.
Among the school heads who appeared before the committee were principals and senior principals from Ng’iya Girls High School, Maseno School, Maranda Boys High School, Kisumu Girls High School, Kisumu Girls High School and Chavakali Boys High School.
Speaking to journalists after Thursday’s proceedings, Hon. Maungu said the committee had identified discrepancies in the distribution of learning materials.
“We have seen a school that received 400 and 506 extra books,” Hon. Maungu said.
He questioned whether the distribution system was based on accurate and up-to-date enrolment figures.
“The question is, when you receive extra numbers, does it mean there is a school somewhere that does not have books?” he asked.
The committee said it would summon the Kenya Institute of Curriculum Development (KICD) to explain how textbooks are allocated to schools and establish why some institutions receive more books than they require.
Hon. Maungu said the Government must ensure that schools in marginalised and far-flung areas, including those in Mandera and Turkana counties, receive adequate learning materials.
“We expect KICD to have the right data to ensure that the books supplied are enough for the students who are there, so that those in far-flung areas in Mandera, Turkana and other places get what is supposed to be theirs,” he said.
The committee also raised concern over millions of shillings in outstanding school fees, with some debts dating back more than a decade.
Hon. Maungu said some schools had accumulated fee arrears dating as far back as 2010 and 2015, complicating efforts by administrators to run the institutions.
“A matter came out that schools have millions of shillings which are collected, and you find some of them date back to 2015 or 2010,” he said.
The chairman said school heads were caught between recovering money owed to their institutions and complying with Government directives against withholding students’ certificates because of unpaid fees.
“We have advised them that they don’t need to hold a certificate for the learner because this student wants to join university or college. On the other hand, they need to have this money paid,” Mr Maungu said.
He proposed that schools prepare schedules detailing long-standing fee arrears and submit them to the Ministry of Education for consideration.
“Such cannot happen by the authority of the board or the ministry. They need to seek a waiver from the ministry and table a schedule of all the fees that are in arrears for many years before the Basic Education Department, which can then forward it to Treasury,” he said.
Hon. Maungu attributed part of the outstanding receivables to delays in the disbursement of Government capitation.
“Some of those receivables are due to capitation not being sent. We call upon the Government to ensure that it supports the head teachers by making their work easier by sending capitation as it should,” he said.
MPs oppose school loans
The committee also took issue with school boards obtaining loans from commercial banks to finance construction and other projects without the requisite approvals.
Hon. Maungu cited Ng’iya Girls High School, whose management had previously secured a bank loan of about Sh50 million towards a project estimated to cost approximately Sh150 million.
He warned that allowing school administrators to borrow freely could expose public institutions to serious financial risks.
“That should be very limited. If you allow principals to keep borrowing money left, right and centre, we shall enter into a total mess,” he said.
According to the chairman, the school had failed to provide evidence that it had obtained the necessary approvals from the Ministry of Education and the National Treasury before securing the facility.
“The law is very clear. No principal can simply walk into a bank and take a facility. There should be approvals from the Ministry of Education and Treasury,” he said.
Although the committee was informed that the Ng’iya Girls loan had since been cleared, Hon. Maungu said Parliament would have to provide clear guidelines on borrowing by public schools.
“We shall table a report in Parliament on what should happen with schools that go into borrowing because that should not be allowed,” he said.
The committee also raised questions over the failure by some schools to employ qualified procurement officers despite requirements under public procurement law.
Hon. Maungu said national schools were public institutions and were therefore required to comply with the Public Procurement and Asset Disposal Act.
“The Public Procurement and Asset Disposal Act is very clear as to how public institutions must procure. It is unfortunate that some of our schools procure as if they are procuring for private entities,” he said.
He said national schools should have qualified procurement specialists to ensure that the acquisition of goods and services complies with the law.
“It is important that a national school has a head of procurement who can procure and follow what is supposed to be done,” he said.
For smaller schools that may not be able to employ full-time procurement specialists, Hon. Maungu suggested that the Ministry of Education could provide support through its sub-county structures.
The committee said the issues identified during its hearings would form part of a comprehensive report to Parliament, with recommendations aimed at strengthening financial management and accountability in public schools.
Hon. Maungu said the exercise represented a new level of parliamentary probe of secondary schools.
“Going by the new Constitution, the Public Finance Management Act and the Public Audit Act, it is very important that this committee, which is in charge of governance and education, examines the reports of the Auditor-General,” he said.
“For the first time ever in this country, this committee will be taking on the books of high schools.”
The committee has started with national schools, classified as C1 institutions, before considering reports from other categories of secondary schools.
Hon. Maungu said there were about 120 to 130 national schools, making them a manageable starting point for the exercise.
The scrutiny is part of Parliament’s oversight mandate over the use of public resources and implementation of recommendations contained in reports by the Auditor-General.
