This archive report was first published on 16 December 2019.
Published on December 16, 2019, the Ministry of Education in Kenya has been struggling with the National Education Management Information System (Nemis) since its inception in 2017.
Despite the digital registration of learners starting in 2017, only half of the pupils have been entered into the system to date.
Education Cabinet Secretary George Magoha has admitted that his ministry does not have an accurate and reliable database on the actual number of schools and students, which is crucial for decision-making.
As a result, Magoha has directed county directors of education to verify details about learners and primary and secondary schools, with a focus on the actual number of pupils from Grade Two to Standard Eight countrywide.
"This information is required for 2020 capitation and other critical decisions. It is reiterated that no institution shall receive funds or any other ministerial services without this data," Magoha added.
County directors of education will be held personally responsible for the information provided.
The digital registration of learners was supposed to provide personal identification numbers to the registered children, with funding to schools based on the programme.
However, a report by the Education ministry submitted to the National Assembly early this year showed that the system has only captured information on 50 per cent of the learners in public and private schools.
According to the report, only 6.8 million learners out of a possible 13 million have been captured, with information on only 3.28 million primary school pupils out of a possible 8.89 million in the database.
This means about five million children are unaccounted for.
The government provides Sh1,420 for every pupil in a public primary school annually, while secondary schools receive Sh22,244 in funding per student.
