Kitui records 80% Grade 10 enrolment after Ruto directive

Grade 10 learners registering for admission at Kaundu Mixed day and Boarding Secondary school in Mwingi North subcounty of Kitu County/Musembi Nzengu.

Kitui county commissioner Erastus Mbui speaking in his office on Wednesday/Musembi Nzengu.

More than 80 per cent of Grade 10 learners in Kitui have enrolled in senior schools, county commissioner Erastus Mbui has said.

Move follows a nationwide directive by President William Ruto to ensure full transition.

Mbui said the transition rate from junior school to senior school in Kitui had remained below 50 per cent until January 22, when Ruto ordered the immediate admission of all learners.

The President directed schools to admit students regardless of whether they had paid fees or acquired uniforms, insisting on a 100 per cent transition from Grade 9 to Grade 10.

Speaking to the media on Wednesday, Mbui said enrolment had since improved significantly.

“We are now well above 80 per cent in Grade 10 enrolment,” he said.

He added that a countywide mobilisation drive is ongoing to ensure all learners report to school.

Mbui expressed optimism that the remaining 20 per cent of candidates who sat the Kenya Primary School Education Assessment in Kitui would soon join senior schools.

“We are still verifying because some learners may already be in school. We are counter-checking through both school and home visits to be certain,” he said.

He noted that authorities are also verifying cases where learners opted for different schools from those initially assigned, or where parents enrolled them in private academies.

“We must be certain to achieve 100 per cent transition. Our mission is to ensure every learner joins a senior school for Grade 10,” he said.

Mbui said chiefs across the county have been directed to obtain lists of learners who were in Grade 9 last year to track their transition.

“This helps us determine how many learners were in school and identify the schools they were admitted to,” he said.

The commissioner added that officers are also conducting home visits to trace learners.

Mbui said any Grade 10 learner found at home without a valid reason would be assisted to enrol in a nearby senior school.

“The bottom line is to ensure that all Grade 10 learners continue with their education. There is absolutely no justification for any learner to be out of school,” he said.