Gov't sets aside Ksh.18B for construction of 18,000 Grade 9 classrooms

The government has allocated Ksh.18 billion for the construction of Grade Nine infrastructure, with the funds being used to construct 18,000 classrooms, up from an initial plan of 16,000.

According to Education Cabinet Secretary (CS) Migos Ogamba Phase One of the construction is complete, with 3,500 classrooms completed while Phase Two will see the delivery of an additional 7,500 classrooms by 2025.

The National Government Constituency Development Fund (NG-CDF) will further support the initiative by funding the construction of an extra 6,800 classrooms.

CS Ogamba made the remarks in Nakuru during the closing of the 2024 KCSE examinations and the opening of nine Grade 9 classes at Moi Primary School.

"The government has set aside Ksh.65.2 billion for free secondary education, Ksh.35.9 billion for junior schools and Ksh.9.36 billion for primary schools. Besides this, they have set an additional Ksh.18 billion for the construction of Grade 9 infrastructure," said CS Migos.

"These investments are vital in bridging gaps and providing accessible, inclusive, relevant and quality information for all our learners. To accommodate the learners transitioning to Grade 9 a need analysis was done and determined that the country requires 16, 000 classrooms. The Ministry of Education has initiated the construction of 18, 000 classrooms."

He also highlighted that 621 cases of malpractice were reported during the KCSE exams, with 198 examination centres under investigation for irregularities.