Financing for equity in pre-primary education
1. Education resources to subnational governments
2. Education resources to institutions
3. Education resources to students and families
4. Social policies and family support programmes
Introduction
Key financing indicators (UIS Data)
The official entrance age to pre-primary education is 3 years old. In 2023, the net enrolment rate for pre-primary education (both sexes) was 58%.
Governance
The Ministry of Education oversees the education system, including two years of free and compulsory pre-primary education as part of the basic education cycle, as regulated by the 2021 Early Childhood Education Act and 2024 Basic Education Bill. The State Department for Early Learning and Basic Education is responsible for managing the country’s basic education system, including policy development, school administration, student assessment, special needs education, and international cooperation.
The government provides 2 years of pre-primary education, Pre Primary 1 (PP1) and Pre Primary 2 (PP2), to children between the ages of 4 and 5 before entering primary school at age 6. In 2010, the responsibility to deliver pre-primary education was devolved to the 47 counties, with each county budgeting for and implementing early childhood education (pre-primary education and early childhood development and care) independently. County Governments are the core delivery mechanism for pre-primary education, early childhood development, and child-care facilities. In terms of financing, they are responsible for providing capitation grants and remunerating pre-primary teachers. The national government (through the Ministry of Education) retains authority for pre-primary education in terms of policy, standards, curriculum, and assessment.
The 2021 Early Childhood Education Act provided for the establishment of the National Early Childhood Education Committee (NECEC) and County Early Childhood Committees (CECEC) to oversee implementation of early childhood education at those levels. Pre-primary education is further regulated by the 2017 National Pre-Primary Education Policy and 2018 National Pre-Primary Education Policy Standard Guidelines.
In 2019, the Competency-Based Curriculum required that only students between the ages of 4 and 5 years be enrolled in Pre-Primary I and II classes, respectively. Prior to this, pre-primary classes enrolled students between the ages of 3 to 5 years.
Tuition-free status
There are two years of free and compulsory pre-primary education as part of the basic education cycle, as regulated by the 2021 Early Childhood Education Act and 2024 Basic Education Bill
1. Education resources to subnational governments
Pre-primary education, early childhood development and childcare are all devolved to County Governments. Each of the 47 counties is responsible for delivering pre-primary education services and budgeting for pre-primary education independently. Counties receive lump sum funding from the national government, with no specific budget allocation to provide pre-primary services. Early childhood education expenditure is combined with several other sectors, including ICT, Youth Affairs and Sports and Social Services. Expenditure on education services accounted for an average of 7% of county allocations between 2018/19 to 2022/23.
The general national equitable share allocation to counties includes indicators on population (42%), poverty (14%), equal share (22%), and geographical size.
2. Education resources to institutions
Unlike primary and secondary education, pre-primary education does not benefit from per-capita grants from the national government, meaning that funding streams can vary from region to region. County Governments are responsible for providing capitation grants and special needs support grants to all public pre-primary schools (with an explicit requirement to put in place provisions that support children with special needs), as determined in the 2017 National Pre-Primary Education Policy and 2018 National Pre-Primary Education Policy Standard Guidelines. However, there are drastically different approaches in how counties apply their duties. Between 2013 and 2020, at least 15 Counties enacted local legislation to regulate early childhood education provision.
Counties typically allocate most their funding to infrastructure, with classroom construction their main priority. To enhance access to equitable and inclusive pre-primary education to marginalized and disadvantaged groups, pre-primary education has further been expanded to cover, Dugsi, Madrassa centers and mobile pre-primary centers.
3. Education resources to students and families
The 2017 National Pre-Primary Education Policy supports the implementation of a voucher system for equity and inclusion in pre-primary education. Counties may provide bursaries for pre-primary school children, but this varies.
The 2024 Basic Education Scholarships and Bursaries Bill regulates the provision of scholarships and bursaries for children with financial need at basic education levels, which includes pre-primary education.
4. Social policies and family support programmes
The Kenya National Safety Net Programme (NSNP), established in September 2013, provides a unified framework for the government’s four cash transfer programmes: Persons With Severe Disabilities Cash Transfer, Older Persons Cash Transfer, Cash Transfer for Orphans and Vulnerable Children (CT-OVC), and the Hunger Safety Net Cash Transfer. The programme delivers monetary support to persons living with disabilities, which is not linked to education. None of the cash transfers under NSNP carry conditions related to school attendance or educational outcomes.
