President William Ruto has extended a rare and significant invitation to leaders of the Kenya Primary Schools Headteachers Association (KEPSHA) for a high-level consultative meeting at State House, Nairobi.
According to a memo dated September 7 and signed by KEPSHA National Chairman Fuad Abdalla Ali, the meeting is scheduled for Friday, September 12, 2025, and will bring together a broad cross-section of leadership from Kenya’s primary education sector.
“I wish to inform you that His Excellency the President has extended a formal invitation to the leadership of KEPSHA—from the grassroots to the national level—for a meeting at State House,” the memo reads in part.
The meeting will comprise members of the National Executive Board, National Governing Council (NGC), and four representatives from each sub-county, including the Chairperson, Secretary, Treasurer, and Gender Representative. Members of the KEPSHA National Secretariat will also be in attendance.
County Chairpersons have been directed to submit names and delegate details by September 8 to facilitate logistical arrangements. The memo emphasized that the matter is both urgent and important.
The President’s invitation comes amid growing challenges in Kenya’s education sector as schools reopen for the third term.
Institutions across the country are grappling with delayed disbursement of capitation funds, leaving many struggling to operate.
According to Education Principal Secretary Julius Bitok, the delays are tied to an ongoing national verification exercise following revelations of ghost schools and inflated enrollment figures, which had reportedly cost taxpayers Ksh3.7 billion in recent years.
The funds, Bitok noted, are expected to be fully disbursed by the end of the week.
Meanwhile, Kiharu MP Ndindi Nyoro has criticized the government over the delays, blaming the National Treasury’s prioritization of debt repayments over critical sectors like education.
Speaking at a public event on Sunday, September 7, Nyoro warned that the ongoing financial strain could undermine students preparing for national exams such as KCSE, KPSEA, and KJSEA.
In a parallel effort to address staffing shortages in junior secondary schools, the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) has announced the recruitment of 24,000 intern teachers for a one-year period.
The hiring will prioritize candidates qualified in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) subjects.
However, the move has sparked discontent among unemployed teachers with qualifications in Arts and Languages, many of whom feel sidelined.
President Ruto’s meeting with KEPSHA leadership is expected to address some of these urgent challenges and explore solutions to improve the country’s basic education system. It is also seen as a strategic gesture to engage directly with grassroots education leaders as the third academic term unfolds.
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