Post more female teachers in Wajir, women leaders urge TSC

Fatuma Jehow, the Wajir Women's representative, said the number of female teachers in girls' schools in the region is very low, which they said is hurting girls' academic performance.

They said that for a long time, girls schools in the area have been disadvantaged because they lack enough female teachers compared to boys schools.

Women leaders from Wajir are calling on the Teachers Service Commission to post more female teachers.

Wajir needs more women teachers to improve girl' academic performance, to discuss personal issues and improve their self-esteem, the Education ministry and TSC and have been told.

They were told on Wednesday, Women's Day, at Jogbaru Girls Secondary School, when they joined student to celebrate week-long Women's Day.

The governor's wife Rukia Abinasir said there are issues girls can discuss freely with female teachers as opposed to their male counterparts.

"I am appealing to the Ministry of Education to seriously look into this matter because it is one of the biggest contributors to the poor performance among the girls," she said.

Girls have always been outperformed by their boys counterparts in the national exams at both  primary and secondary schools.

She added that the contributions and impact of girls and women to Wajir’s success was significant and as such, she shall continue advocating for their progress in education and other sectors.

Some of the issues that contribute to poor performance of girls include FGM, early marriages and a patriarchal society that largely favours men.

“Parents and guardians should give equal opportunities to all genders. we don’t have to discriminate because the children are all ours and when they all succeed we are happy as parents,”she said.

Male teachers are also the majority in the few girls schools that are available.

The governor's wife inspired the students to work hard and remain steadfast in their studies, challenging Form 4 leavers joining colleges to take up teaching as a profession.

These young people, she said, are the ones who will save the region from the current problem of insufficient teachers.

“This issue of teacher shortage is one we have talked about for so long but the solution lies right here. If you students first study hard in academics and get good grades in the national exams, then choose a teaching course at the college,” she said.

The Wajir woman rep said she will use her position to push for recruitment of more teachers, especially female teachers, saying that it was regrettable that the many schools were suffering from a shortage of teachers. This shortage will  greatly affect the smooth implementation of the CBC.

As part the celebrations, the two who were joined by county officials. They visited Wajir Women’s Prison where they  addressed the inmates before donating dignity kits and refreshments.

The governor's wife extended her support to petty offenders whom she pledged to assist in paying the fines for a few of the inmates to give them a second chance.

(Edited by V. Graham)