• Parents were transferring their children from public nurseries and later admitting them in public primary schools
• Now they are returning them to public ECDEs after their refurbishment started by the county government
Image: GEORGE MUGO
More than 10 years into devolution, the grim sight of a dilapidated shack with an earth floor stands as a haunting symbol of the dire condition that has plagued Early Childhood Education Centres in Kiambu.
The shack hosts Mbariki Nursery School in Nyanduma Ward's Lari subcounty. Its crumbling wooden walls have gaping holes. The school offers a snapshot of what most of the 534 centres in the county look like.
Yet it is supposed to serve as the bedrock and foundation of 30 young minds, 18 in PP1 and 12 in PP2 classes, who have been grappling with lessons, the uncertainty of their future and well-being.
Most ECDE centres stand in the same primary schools where most MPs have refurbished classrooms using the CDF kitty, yet are still neglected.
Margaret Muthoni, the chief instructor of Mbariki ECDE centre, says although pupils have been admitted to the facility, many leave after one term due to its sorry condition.
She said for the two levels of ECDE, the number of pupils was consistently under 20, and that it had only recently begun to rise after the county government introduced a feeding programme.
Charity Wanjiku, a parent at Gathaiti Primary School, said one cannot keep their child in a nursery that is dusty and unkempt.
"We take our children to private ECDE centres and later look for vacancies for Grade 1 in public primary schools, which are in a better state," she said.
“The ECDEs have always been left out while primary schools are upgraded. We fail to understand why it is so.”
The feeding programme provides pupils in the county ECDEs with a daily bowl of porridge and three boiled eggs a week.
Muthoni said the classroom's walls are collapsing, and the ground is a mess. The general state of hygiene has been poor.
"Therefore, whenever we admit children for PPI, their parents would transfer them in the second term, blaming the 'bad condition' of the schools," she said.
Image: GEORGE MUGO
TURNING POINT
The institution is currently getting a significant makeover as a result of Kiambu Governor Kimani Wamatangi's plans, which not only overhaul the infrastructure of all ECDEs in Kiambu but also the structure of all of the schools in the county.
The model ECDE centres will have two classrooms with tiled floors and ceilings, an office, a bathroom for students and staff and a play area for all the 38,000 children in county government-run ECDE centres.
"First impressions are important because they shape a person's attitude and behaviour towards something," Wamatangi asked.
"Imagine if the children's first exposure to schooling is in the dreadful condition of public nursery schools. How do we expect them to love learning?"
The county government of Kiambu has started modernising all the 524 public ECDEs in the county.
Currently, the county is working on 140 ECDE centres, and Wamatangi says 130 of them are in the last stages of construction.
They will be ready for use at the opening of the next term, and the plan is to overhaul all of the county ECDEs by 2025.
Majority leader Geoffrey Mucheke, who is also the Kalimoni MCA, said nothing much was done towards the ECDEs centers by previous county administrations.
"We have subjected our children to very bad learning conditions,” he said.
Wamatangi said the programme aims to increase enrolment and keep children in school.
It will also be integrated into a socioeconomic empowerment programme, where women are trained to be the leading suppliers of eggs, among other goals.
Porridge is offered daily, and eggs are also offered on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. A packet of milk is offered as well through an initiative called “Kiambu ECDE milk” as part of the governor's commitment to revamping the ECDE sector.
The county has been delivering a package of five chicks to women's groups in all 12 subcounties through the Agriculture department.
The chicks are one-month-old enhanced kienyeji chicks.
Nyambari Maendeleo Women chairwoman Martha Gathoni said the chicks are now grown up and laying eggs, and most members are selling the eggs to earn a living.
"We received the first batch in mid-last year and by early January, those chickens were laying eggs," she said.
"Some have received twice and thrive, are were selling more than 10 eggs daily for Sh20 each, earning them Sh200 daily."
In the long run, the women who would gain will provide a feeding programme for young children to the county government.
Wamatangi said the empowerment programme serves as a model for rural development.
"It also addresses the economic well-being of local farmers and ensures that the county's youngest residents have access to nutritious meals," he said.
Education chief officer Dr Mercy Njagi said since the feeding programme was introduced, enrollment in ECDE centres has increased from 32,000 to 38,000.
In one nursery school in Kibichoi, Githunguri subcounty, enrollment rose from six pupils to 35 in one term after the feeding programme was introduced last year.
Lari Kirenga MCA Josphat Kinyanjui said the ECDEs plays a major role in children’s education since they prepare them to start learning.
He urged the MCAs and the society to have a positive attitude towards the revamping of the centres, saying the efforts the government is putting towards the ECDE learners are impressive.
Image: GEORGE MUGO