Schools were partially opened on Monday after months of closure as a result of the global Covid-19 pandemic.
Reports indicate that thousands of students did not report back to class.
The missing numbers have fuelled fears that a large population of students, encouraged by financially distressed parents some of whom may have lost their jobs, may have decided to give school a break or dropped out altogether.
Girls, anecdotal reports indicate, may have joined prostitution while boys have joined the informal job market as matatu touts and hawkers.
The scale of the dropout will probably be more clear next month when the Education ministry opens the gate to all students.
Education chiefs should use this opportunity to establish why students have opted to stay home.
The findings will provide sufficient understanding of the challenge and help to device the right solution to the problem.
The future of a large swathe of youths is at stake. We should not let the lure of quick money become a hurdle in the quest to have an educated and highly skilled workforce.
Getting the students back to class is part of the national campaign against poverty. The students most likely to abandon school on account of financial pressure will be those from poor homes.
Quote of the Day: “The rich will do anything for the poor but get off their backs.”
Karl Marx
The Communist philosopher became the editor-in-chief of Rheinische Zeitung (Rhenish Newspaper) on October 15, 1842.
