The Kenya Kwanza government has announced that all 46,000 Junior Secondary School teachers will be employed on permanent and pensionable terms.
This assurance came after a Parliamentary Group Meeting on Tuesday, where National Assembly Finance Committee Chair Kimani Kuria stated that sufficient funds have been allocated for this purpose.
This move is expected to provide job security and stability for teachers in the junior secondary education sector.
“The PG was also informed that adequate funds -KSh18 billion – have been provided for the employment of all 46,000 Junior Secondary teachers who are on internship,” Kimani said.
Teachers Service Commission (TSC) is also expected to hire 20,000 interns beginning next month to curb the shortage of teachers.
“ The Funds have also been provided to hire 20,000 interns next month. The policy is now to transition teachers from internship to permanent and pensionable terms,” he added.
Treasury Cabinet Secretary Njuguna Ndung’u initially proposed an allocation of Sh13.4 billion in the 2024-25 budget to employ Junior Secondary School teachers on permanent and pensionable terms.
However, the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) presented a higher estimate to MPs in mid-May, stating that it would cost approximately Sh30 billion to hire all 46,000 interns into permanent positions by July 1, 2024.
The TSC also outlined plans to hire 26,000 intern teachers in January 2025. The Parliamentary Group meeting was convened shortly before the tabling of the Finance Bill, 2024 in Parliament, amid protests known as Occupy Parliament, urging the National Assembly to reject the bill.
