This could be a crucial moment for education in Kenya.
In recent days, the government has admitted that it is no longer able to fully fund free education in public primary and secondary schools.
Treasury Minister John Mbadi said that the financial burden of education is too heavy for the state and will force it to cut funds for public schools, which currently amount to 22,000 shillings per capita for primary schools.
According to Mbadi, this will not be a total cut, but next year at least 30% will probably be cut, rising to 50% at a later date.
This situation, as Citizen comments, could push parents to dig into their pockets at a time when the education sector is already at the center of numerous controversies, from ghost school scandals to unpaid debts, as well as the need to hire at least 20,000 temporary teachers and trainees.

This means that parents will now have to bear a greater share of the cost of their children's education, raising concerns among parliamentarians, who are now calling for intellectual honesty from both the Ministry of Education and the Treasury.
This reflects a country grappling with growing public debt which, unlike foreign debt, which has remained more or less unchanged for years, including interest payments mainly to China, is increasing.
The concern, however, is seeing a government that is considering cuts in key sectors that are important not only for the most needy, but also for the development of the country itself and for the future of young people, who, not surprisingly, often take to the streets to protest against their politicians.
At the center of the controversy, in fact, remains Kenya's great cancer: corruption.

A few days ago, the auditor general revealed that public funds were paid to non-existent schools last year, with the Minister of Education, Migos Ogamba, under fire. It appears that the operation took place without the necessary approval of the relevant parliamentary committee.
The education committee has also questioned the effectiveness of the new Kenya Education Management Information System (KEMIS). In practice, they see the digitization of the system as a ploy to lengthen student registration times and create an excuse for not distributing per capita funds to families, even though Ogamba himself has guaranteed that the system will be fully operational as soon as possible. So much for cuts...