Parents and teachers in Embu have called for the enhancement of education bursaries from both the National and county governments to match the prevailing harsh economic times. They argued that the cost of education remains a significant challenge for many families, especially those at the bottom of the financial pyramid, in providing quality education to their children. They said the majority of families were struggling to make ends meet with the tough economic times, and it was thus important for both tiers of government to keep increasing the funds, commensurate with the difficult times. ‘Things are difficult even for schools, the prices of commodities have gone up as we are now buying supplies close to twice the original budget that we had drawn,’ said County Schools Principals Chair Ben Njue. He, for instance, said they had budgeted for maize at Sh. 3, 000 per 90-kilogramme bag that had shot up beyond Sh. 6, 000, making it hard for them to run their programmes smoothly. Speaking at Ugweri Grounds in Kagaari South Ward on Friday, during the issuance of bursaries worth Sh. 5 million to Secondary Schools and TVET learners by area Member of the County (MCA), Susan Nyaga, Njue, asked the government to consider increasing the capitation given to students, to cushion them from the hard economic times. Parents said the burden of feeding and educating their children had become too heavy, and the little they were receiving for bursaries was not adequate to lessen the load. ‘For sure, what we have received is little, and it is our wish that the funding is increased,’ said parent Samuel Njeru. During the exercise, orphans and those with disabilities received Sh. 10, 000; the most vulnerable received Sh. 5, 500; and the rest of the applicants got Sh. 2, 500. The MCA regretted that the funding was insufficient to meet the growing number of needy cases but assured that, as leaders, they were committed to continuing to support education in the county. She said they project to increase ward-based bursaries as the economy improves as well as revenue collection in the county, a commitment that has also been given by Governor Cecily Mbarire. Each of the 20 Wards received Sh. 5 million this financial year from the county’s bursary kitty of Sh. 102 million.
Source: Kenya News Agency