This archive report was first published on 29 July 2019.
On July 29, 2019, the government issued a directive for an audit of all public schools in Kenya, a move that is long overdue.
The audit is aimed at ensuring that public funds allocated to education are used judiciously and that any cases of fraud or abuse of office are identified and addressed.
Basic Education Principal Secretary Belio Kipsang instructed auditors to scrutinize every cent spent in the country's 28,000 public schools, with a focus on detecting and preventing corruption.
Head teachers, who are the principal accounting officers for schools, have been accused of mismanaging billions of shillings allocated for education and learner welfare.
Corruption in schools has taken various forms, including looting, over-invoicing, irregular tendering, and bribe demands, resulting in suppliers, teachers, and other workers going unpaid for long periods.
The ultimate losers are the learners and their parents, who spend their hard-earned cash on school fees in the hope of giving their children a promising future.
The government's warning to head teachers that they face jail if found to have misappropriated school funds is a welcome move, but it must be backed up by concrete actions, including the prosecution of those found guilty and the recovery of ill-gotten wealth.
The Education ministry must also strengthen the audit unit to ensure it has the capacity and resources to monitor school finances effectively.
