MPs to grill education CS on Hillside Academy fire, university funding model

Education Cabinet Secretary Julius Migos Ogamba will on Wednesday face Members of Parliament to address pressing issues in the education sector.

Speaker Moses Wetang'ula announced that during the session with MPs, Ogamba will be expected to provide an update on the Education Ministry's efforts to enhance security and safety in schools following the Hillside Endarasha Academy dormitory fire.

Wetang'ula noted that the CS’s report should outline the cause of the fire and steps taken to ensure a safe learning environment in both public and private institutions.

“The House must be fully appraised on the cause of this tragic incident and the remedial measures proposed by the ministry. On behalf of the House, I wish to extend our deepest condolences to the affected families,” Wetang'ula said.

The tragic fire which consumed one of the boys' dormitory, housed 164 pupils. Of these, the government reported that 143 are alive while three were still receiving medical treatment. However, 21 tragically lost their lives.

Parents of students whose whereabouts remain unknown have remained in distress despite a declaration by the government that all the missing students have been accounted for.

CS Ogamba is also expected to present a comprehensive report on the implementation of the new university funding model, including measures taken to simplify it and improve public understanding.

“The Cabinet Secretary will be expected to provide a comprehensive report on the progress made in implementing the new funding model, as well as measures taken to simplify the model and enlighten the public,” Wetang'ula said.

Lawmakers have also requested an estimate of the total cost of education from basic to tertiary levels and details on the annual expenditure for education bursaries and scholarships.

On Monday, President William Ruto appointed a national committee comprising 129 members to review the university funding model.

The decision came amid growing concerns raised by students, parents, and other stakeholders who argue that it might leave needy students unable to access education.

The committee will be divided into four sub-committees, which will include the Workstream on the Review and Refinement of the New Funding Model for Universities and Technical, Vocational Education and Training Institutions (TVETs), and the Workstream on Appeals Arising from the Categorisation of Students into Various Eligibility Bands for the Allocation of Scholarships and Loans.

There will also be a Workstream on the Structure of Student Loans and a Workstream on the Review of the Cost of University Academic Programmes.

The chairpersons and co-chairpersons of the sub-committees will form a coordination board that will oversee the funding model. The board will be led by Prof Japheth Micheni Ntiba.

The committee is expected to appraise the implementation of the new funding model for KCSE 2022 and KCSE 2023 candidates who were placed in public and private universities and TVETS.

They will also evaluate the effectiveness of the Means Testing Instrument (MTI) in ensuring that the categorisation of students captures their socio-economic realities.

Further, they will assess the effectiveness of the appeals mechanism in the resolution of student categorisation concerns and/or challenges about the bands for access to scholarships and loans.

Ruto noted that the committee will operate for eight weeks, beginning September 16, and will report directly to him through the Cabinet Secretary for Education. Its secretariat will be housed at the Ministry of Education headquarters at Jogoo House.