Two per cent of all pupils who sat for 2020 KCPE exams in Nyeri cannot be accounted for, county director of education Sabina Aroni has said.
Speaking on Wednesday during the commissioning of the disbursement of Sh40 million Nyeri Elimu Fund bursary cheques to principals, Aroni said 98 per cent of them can be accounted for.
Out of the 98 per cent, 96 per cent have been placed in secondary schools while the remaining have joined Technical and Vocational Education and Training institutions or repeated while others are at home.
She called on the county government officials and teachers to work with the national government to identify children who have not joined any school for assistance.
Aroni advised them to notify subcounty directors of education and deputy county commissioners if they come across such learners.
This announcement came as Education CS George Magoha announced that Nyeri was ranked first in the country in the transition of learners from primary to secondary schools.
The director said as much as some schools are congested, subcounty schools are still under-enrolled.
“We still have vacancies in these schools and we can take as many as all of them. So any child who wants to access education and they are at home, there are enough vacancies,” she said.
She said there is pressure in the county and extra county boarding schools though day schools are under-enrolled.
Aroni said analyzing last year’s KCSE examination, the county did not drop in performance, but most subcounty schools dropped.
“This tells us that there is something peculiar to them and we have talked about it in the county education board,” she said.
“Part of what we are establishing is that some are missing facilities while others are engaged in drugs and child labour.”
She cited Kieni West where onions are grown as cash crops as the most affected and called on all to work together to address the issue.
Aroni called on villagers who notice a child involved in child labour to notify the relevant authorities for action.
This she said will enable the authorities to support them to come out of the problem.
The education director said drugs in day schools have been a problem and said some adults know school children who peddle drugs.
“We require that support so that every child at least has access to form four level of education to be able to steer this county to the highest level,” she said.
She said cases of Covid-19 have been reported in many schools but have been handled well eliminating panic and anxiety.
Governor Mutahi Kahiga who was the chief guest said his government will keep its ears on the ground saying his administration has been able to assist several learners who were stuck.
“Whenever there are stuck students, let us be informed and do what we can to ensure they transit,” he said.
