Chilly weather drives 1,400 learners out of Nyandarua schools

Hundreds of secondary school learners are yet to report back to school in Nyandarua County due to the chilly weather being experienced in the region.

According to the County Director of Education Philip Wambua, the students had opted for transfers to other schools in warmer counties after the reopening of learning institutions in early January. The affected students are 1,425.

“At least 1,000 students had sought to transfer to other schools outside the county with most of their parents citing cold weather as the main reason for transferring their children,” he said.

Mr Wambua noted that most transfers were witnessed among Form One learners.

“175 pregnancy-related cases were reported in our secondary schools with 55 having been readmitted, while 120 are yet to report. Twenty-seven girls were either breastfeeding or pregnant at the time of reopening of schools, most of whom have resumed schooling,” said Mr Wambua, who spoke during the County Service Delivery meeting in Ol Kalou.

The county has 105 secondary schools, 50 of them being boarding schools.

Schools in Kinangop and Kipipiri constituencies are the worst-hit by the transfers.

According to meteorologists, Nyandarua County has two different climates.

The oceanic climate parts of the county are those in Kwa Haraka, Njabini, South Kinangop and Engineer.

“These areas are classified as warm and temperate. They have significant rainfall; even in the driest month, there is a lot of rain. The climate here is classified as Cfb by the Köppen-Geiger system. The temperature here averages 15.8 °C,” said Mr said the County Director of Meteorological Services, Misheck Mutembei.

Mediterranean climate

The warm-summer Mediterranean climate areas include those in Ndaragwa.

Currently, Mr Mutembei said the county is currently experiencing high daytime temperature variation and relatively low night temperatures.

“Most parts of the county are experiencing generally sunny dry conditions and chilly nights this week. Morning hours are having sunny intervals, afternoons are generally sunny and the nights partly cloudy with isolated showers in a few places, especially on high ground areas,” said Mr Mutembei.

Some of the commonest complications in the county that are related to the chilly weather include arthritis and pneumonia, among other chest-related diseases.

“We normally advise our students to carry extra heavy jackets, especially during the cold season. We also make sure that they have access to hot water for showering during the said season,” a teacher at Karima Girls High School, said .

A Teacher Service Commission (TSC) staff in Nyandarua County also revealed that some teachers have been seeking transfers to the neighbouring counties.

“A good number of teachers have also opted to be commuting from the neighbouring counties of Nakuru and Laikipia to come to work in Nyandarua. Chilly weather and inadequate housing have been cited as major reasons,” said the officer.