• The Ministry of Education's National Education Management Information System (Nemis) has only captured six million learners since its introduction in 2018.
• But in the manual register used previously by the government to distribute funds, the population of pupils in public primary schools is about 10 million.
About four million learners not captured in the online register for free primary education could miss government funding beginning January.
The Ministry of Education's National Education Management Information System (Nemis) has only captured six million learners since its introduction in 2018.
But in the manual register used previously by the government to distribute funds, the population of pupils in public primary schools is about 10 million.
This means that either the learners not captured are yet to be registered or the numbers were inflated.
The ministry describes Nemis as a ‘truth-meter’ to give up-to-date and real-time numbers of learners in schools.
If the ministry sticks with the Nemis data, head teachers in schools with more students than those registered online will have to grapple with funding shortfalls.
It could also slow down the payment of suppliers, for the purchase of stationery and salaries for teachers employed by boards.
A similar problem was encountered last year when the government first distributed funds to secondary schools through Nemis.
At least 300,000 students were left without funding because their details had yet to be uploaded to the system.
Each year, the government allocates Sh1,420 to each pupil.
Authorities have traditionally relied on enrollment figures presented by head teachers to work out subsidy wired to 23,000 primary schools.
There have been suspicions of inflation of enrollment figures but which have been hard to prove given the manual documentation.
Secondary schools have been receiving funds through the platform since the beginning of the year.
Basic Education PS Belio Kipsang on Thursday said the shift will deter manipulation of pupil numbers that resulted to the government funding 'ghost learners'.
The government further questioned whether that alone is the reason for the huge discrepancy.
"Previously pupils transferred from one school to another, but the school they left continued submitting data with their names to claim capitation funds," Belio said.
The PS was addressing the Global Partnership for Education technical meeting taking place in Nairobi this week.
"The new school the student has been admitted to will also demand capitation for the learner," he added.
The online platform developed as part of the Gloprogram has been extended for an extra two years.
Among other things, the project supported the distribution of textbooks to schools and the development of the online registration system.
Yesterday, head teachers cited lack of birth certificates — mandatory to list a pupil in the Nemis — among the reasons for those who have not registered.
"There has been a deliberate effort to help those with birth certificates get the document so as to enable enrollment in the online platform but the numbers are yet to reflect the true picture," Kepsha chairman Nicholas Gathemia said.
(edited by O. Owino)