The government is planning to transfer the distribution of Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) certificates from schools to the offices of sub-county directors of education.
Education Cabinet Secretary Julius Ogamba informed Members of Parliament that he aims to eliminate the practice of schools withholding certificates, as it has been reported that principals are ignoring orders to release them.
This decision comes in response to increasing pressure from MPs urging the government to ensure that school leaders issue certificates that are being held back due to unpaid fees.
The MPs contend that many former students are unable to find jobs or continue their education because their certificates are still held by schools. As a result, many have been forced into unskilled labor due to the absence of official academic qualifications, according to members of the National Assembly’s Education Committee.
Despite Ogamba’s recent directive for schools to unconditionally release all withheld certificates, MPs expressed doubts about its effectiveness, pointing out that similar orders from previous education ministers have often been ignored. Tinderet MP Julius Melly, who chairs the Education Committee, questioned what would make this directive different from past ones that were not enforced.
School administrators have argued that they are owed more than Sh20 billion in unpaid fees, making it challenging to release the certificates without financial repercussions.
In 2019, former Education CS George Magoha proposed that only students who genuinely cannot pay should have their certificates released unconditionally, while those who can should be required to settle their debts. He even suggested reporting defaulters to Credit Reference Bureaus (CRBs) to enforce payment. However, MPs criticized Magoha’s approach as punitive.
Ogamba did not specify whether this new policy for issuing certificates would apply to students under the Competency-Based Curriculum (CBC), who are set to receive certificates at the end of junior secondary (Grade 9) and senior secondary (Grade 12).
With only three more KCSE cohorts remaining before the 8-4-4 system is phased out, any changes in policy would mainly impact the last groups of 8-4-4 candidates. Additionally, Teachers Service Commission (TSC) CEO Nancy Macharia has previously instructed all school heads to release the certificates.