We need a national agency to run bursaries and scholarships

Last month, the Daily Nation had an article titled, ‘Bursary Scandal’. It highlighted the plight of needy and brilliant students who have been unable to enrol in secondary schools due to a lack of school fees. This situation led me to ponder over how we can effectively manage bursaries and scholarships and protect them from the influence of political agendas. According to Article 53(b) of the Constitution and Section 13(1) of the Children Act 2022, every child is entitled to free and compulsory basic education.

However, it is disheartening that 131,854 children have not yet reported to school. This alarming statistic indicates that we are jeopardising the aspirations of our future generations. Furthermore, there are numerous cases where parents, despite their children securing slots in prestigious national schools, have had to opt for less renowned extra county schools simply due to financial constraints.

This situation is particularly distressing when considering the existence of genuinely needy students who could greatly benefit from financial assistance.

After failing to secure admission to national schools, many pupils often experience a loss of hope and self-esteem. They are compelled to attend local, extra-county schools despite having the potential for national-level education.

Additionally, it has become common to see students holding placards, seeking financial assistance from fellow Kenyans to enable them to join Form One, highlighting their dire need. This scenario repeats itself year after year despite the availability of numerous bursaries and scholarship programs offered by both the public and private sectors.

Reducing illiteracy

Presently, there are six key bursary and scholarship programmes. Among them is the Presidential Secondary School Bursary (PSSB), a cornerstone initiative of Vision 2030 aimed at reducing illiteracy by facilitating access to education and enhancing the transition rate from primary to secondary schools. In this program, the local Member of Parliament (MP) acts as the designated patron of the Committee. However, this structure has led to the PSSB becoming a tool for political manoeuvring.

While private sector initiatives, such as the “Wings to Fly” programme by Equity Bank, and those by KCB, Cooperative Bank, and others, have achieved notable success, public sector programs have largely failed over the years. It is crucial for politicians, including Members of Parliament, Members of County Assemblies (MCAs), senators and governors to refrain from administering these bursaries and scholarships to ensure their effectiveness.

Furthermore, implementing discriminatory requirements, such as presenting a parent's voter card for eligibility, has transformed these educational aids into campaign tools for politicians.

First and foremost, it is imperative to establish a national bursaries and scholarship body to manage these funds, thereby removing them from the control of politicians. This is crucial because many deserving students often miss out on this assistance due to their lack of alignment with political interests. Frequently, there are instances of “ghost students” created by politicians to misappropriate government funds. Additionally, this body would address the issue of multiple beneficiaries where a student might apply for and receive all six scholarships, depriving many other needy students of these funds.

Prudent management

By consolidating all national government scholarships and bursary programmes into a single entity, we can ensure accountability and prudent management, significantly reducing the misappropriation of funds by politicians.

This national body should also be responsible for creating a database of needy pupils at the ward level, employing a rigorous means-tested approach to ensure that only genuinely needy students gain access to these funds, thereby enabling them to pursue secondary education.

This will also help solve the current problem of clustering for Helb loans. Moreover, there should be an initiative to sensitize parents and pupils about these opportunities through awareness campaigns, as some are unaware of the available opportunities for their children.

In essence, addressing this issue requires a comprehensive, transparent, and depoliticised system prioritising the educational needs of Kenya’s young learners, particularly the most vulnerable. This is an investment in individual pupils and a crucial step towards securing the nation's future.

Dr Odhiambo teaches Actuarial Science at Meru University of Science and Technology (MUST). [email protected]; @Dr_Jodhiambo