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The increased funding implies that the commission is set to recruit more teachers and cater for an increment of teachers' salaries.
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This year, citing hard economic times, TSC offered teachers through their unions a non-monetary 2021-25 CBA t that maintained teachers' annual salary increment
The Teachers Service Commission could soon employ more tutors after the Education ministry recommended an increase of Sh15 billion to its annual budget.
According to the Draft 2022 Budget Policy Statement— a roadmap for 2022-23 budget — the document proposes an increase from the current Sh281.7 billion to Sh296.6 billion, an increase of Sh14.9 billion.
The increased funding under the Teacher Resource Management implies that the commission is set to recruit more teachers and cater for an increment of teachers' salaries.
This year, citing hard economic times, the commission offered teachers through their unions a non-monetary 2021-25 Collective Bargaining Agreement that maintained teachers' annual salary increment.
On the other hand, the Salaries and Remuneration Commission announced a two-year freeze on civil servants' pay rise in July this year.
"TSC is determined to see that teachers are properly staffed. It is working with Ministry of Education to ensure enough teachers are provided by recruiting 5,000 teachers every year and also by engaging intern teachers," reads a section of the policy.
According to the commission's data as at 2018, 28,843 teachers had been recruited, with 8,390 teachers in primary schools and 20,453 teachers in secondary schools.
The commission projected a shortage of 97,826 teachers (36,155 in primary and 61,671 in secondary) this year, 97,214 teachers (35,543 in primary and 61,671 in secondary) and 96,612 teachers (34,941 primary teachers and 61,671 secondary teachers) in 2022 and 2023 respectively.
According to the Economic Survey report, the Gross Enrolment Rate in primary schools improved from 104.4 per cent in 2018 to 100.2 per cent in 2019 and then reduced to 99.6 per cent in 2020.
Enrolment of special needs pupils increased from 121,392 in 2018-19 to 136,081 in 2019-20 and dropped to 132,466 in 2020-21.
Some 8,592,810 pupils received capitation under the free primary education programme in 2020-21.
The number of students enrolled in public secondary schools increased from 2,954,330 in 2018-19 to 3,289,885 in 2020-21.
The enrolment rate for secondary education increased from 70.3 per cent in 2018 to 71.2 per cent in 2019.
On governance and standards, the commission has been allocated Sh1.1 billion from Sh1 billion in the current financial year.
The increase was in form of current expenses that include logistics such as Teacher Performance and Appraisal Development and Competency-Based Curriculum training for teachers among others.
According to the BPS, the education sector has been allocated Sh525.9 billion, Sh539.9 billion and Sh558.4 billion in the financial years 2022/23, 2023/24 and 2024/25 respectively.
-Edited by SKanyara