Normal school calendar to resume from January 2023

Education CS George Magoha has announced that the school calendar will return to business as usual from January 2023.

Speaking on Monday at Mtihani House while releasing the 2021 KCPE results, Magoha said the education sector was highly affected during the pandemic period.

The 2020 Kenya Certificate of Primary Education examinations were postponed to 2021 due to the pandemic.

President Uhuru Kenyatta's order on March 14, 2020, affected the national school calendar that saw schools reopen for the second term in January 2021, for all classes except Grade 4 and Form 1.

"I want to thank the president for being bold enough to 'bite the bullet' when everybody was singing the opposite song," Magoha said.

President Uhuru had removed the nationwide dusk to dawn curfew that had been in effect, and students were able to go back to school while still observing the Ministry of Health's protocol on Covid-19.

The Early Learning and Basic Education Principal Secretary Dr Julius Jwan said he was impressed by centre managers, invigilators and security personnel who affirmed that the candidates wrote their exam papers under strict health protocols to curb the spread of the virus.

Dr Jwan had earlier called on parents to ensure the safety of candidates amidst the Covid-19 pandemic. 

The 2021 KCPE exams kicked off on March 7 and concluded on March 9.

The council registered 1,225,507 candidates in 28,316 KCPE examination centres as compared to 1,191,752 candidates in 28,467 centres in 2020.

He also confirmed that no case of Covid-19 ill candidates had been reported during the exercise. 

The government had earlier indicated that students who might fall sick with Covid-19 symptoms during the exam period will have to do the test in isolation rooms.

Students were required to wear masks at all times when the exam was going on.

The commencement of the exams was supervised by Education Cabinet Secretary George Magoha in Kiambu County, with the Teachers Service Commission CEO Nancy Macharia overseeing the same in Kisumu County.