Kirinyaga county government has started the distribution of free uniforms and other learning materials to all ECDE learners and bursaries totaling Sh147.5 million to secondary students.
During an event held at the county headquarters in Kutus on Thursday, Governor Anne Waiguru issued 15,000 complete sets of uniforms to be distributed to all the ECDE learners.
The sets consisted of shorts, shirts, sweaters for both boys and girls, and socks for both boys and girls, and tunics, blouses.
The uniforms have distinct colours for different constituencies, where ECDE learners from Ndia and Mwea will be wearing blue, while Kirinyaga Central and Gichugu will be wearing green-coloured uniforms.
Speaking at the function, Waiguru said that the County is the first to give out ECDE learners’ school uniforms adding that her administration is committed to sustained production of the uniforms that are sewed at the county-owned Kaitheri Apparel Centre.
‘The uniforms have been produced locally at Kaitheri Apparel Factory t
hrough the Wezesha Mama Initiative, driven by the county government. We will be distributing them for free, and we hope to produce another set in 3 months,’ she said.
The governor added that the uniform project came about during public participation forums where parents expressed frustration with having to source uniforms at exorbitant prices from commercial dealers.
At the same time, she noted that her administration will move further into producing leather shoes for the children.
This, she said, will be done by educating farmers on hides and skins’ management so that they can supply them to potential leather processors at the upcoming Sagana Industrial Park.
To further boost ECDE learning in the county, Waiguru said that plans to undertake a school feeding programme are underway, whereby every learner will receive a packet of milk twice a week as a starting point.
Governor Waiguru also disbursed Sh147.5 million in bursaries to benefit 45,000 students from needy backgrounds.
Out of these students, 35,6
56 are drawn from secondary schools, 5,443 from colleges, and 3,901 from various universities.
Kirinyaga County had disbursed bursaries worth Sh413.8 million in the past six years, benefiting 146,211 deserving students.
The current disbursement is so far the largest and a great improvement from the Sh70 million given in 2019.
Waiguru reaffirmed her commitment to supporting the improvement of the county’s academic performance and giving every child the opportunity to fulfill their potential.
‘We are committed to supporting our children’s education since we believe that every one of them should have the opportunity and means to realise their full potential regardless of their circumstances,’ she said.
She urged the bursary recipients to maintain their academic focus, emphasising the importance of education in shaping their futures and contributing meaningfully to their communities and the nation.
The chairperson of the education committee in Kirinyaga County Assembly Charles Nyamu applauded the governor f
or the timely disbursement of funds since it gives the parents enough room to plan for the coming term.
‘To our parents, let us take care of our children from drug abuse, which has been a hazard in the education sector. My call is also to the parents: let us work together with our teachers to make sure their children get the best, and from the county government side, we will make sure we support you,’ he said.
Githigiriri MCA, Benson Ngahu called on the county assembly education committee to find a way to identify needy children from the area, saying people from other counties may be disguising as hailing from the county.
Moses Mutahi, Headteacher of Gakoingi Primary School, has thanked the County Government for supplying ECDE centres with the uniforms and learning materials saying it will boost learning.
‘We have been facing a lot of challenges in our primary school where parents sometimes bring their children to school without a uniform, making it hard to send their children home since every child has t
he right to education. My appeal to parents: once they get this uniform, let’s take care of it and let our children be neat,’ he said.
Source: Kenya News Agency