I was speaking to policy makers, MPs - Mbadi after school capitation uproar

Treasury CS John Mbadi has said that he was speaking to policy makers on his sentiments that the government cannot sustain education due to budget constraints.

Mbadi said that he was addressing Parliament because they are the ones who approve the budget allocations for different sectors.

He, however, asked parents not to panic, saying the government will make available money to support education, and they are not supposed to fund fees themselves.

Speaking on Sunday, Mbadi said the government must work with parliament to make sure there is enough money to run the schools.

“I was speaking to policy makers, I was speaking to Members of Parliament who approves the budget and I told them that we must enhance the budget fort capitation so that every child receives Sh22,000. What we have in the budget today is less than 22,000. I’m not ready to lie to Kenyans. We must budget so that every child is supported, as the policy says,” Mbadi said.

“I have to put facts are they are. The budget that we have is small, however, we shall add. The government will make sure that schools have enough money to support the children. Do not create panic to parents, parents are not supposed to pay fees and we will not allow them to pay school fees, we will make money available to support children in schools.”

On Friday, Mbadi blamed Parliament for the persistent shortfall in school capitation funds.

He said lawmakers are responsible for approving budgetary allocations that fall short of the amounts needed to support learners in public schools fully.

Mbadi dismissed claims that the government has failed to disburse capitation funds, stating instead that Parliament has repeatedly approved budgets that cannot meet the full cost of educating children in public secondary schools.

“We disbursed the whole amount allocated in the budget, but still, it is not enough,” he said. 

“So the only thing I did yesterday was to confirm that yes, we have allocated so much budget and we are giving it in full. But it is not enough to give every child in Kenya Sh22,000.”

Mbadi explained that the government policy stipulates that each student in a day secondary school should be allocated Sh22,000 annually, junior secondary school students Sh15,000, and those in primary schools Sh1,400. 

However, he revealed that the Treasury has never been able to meet the target of Sh22,000 per learner in full.