Boost education access
A new report has confirmed that Kenya leads in access to education in the East African region. This fully acknowledges the work and resources that have gone into building a viable education system to provide the manpower the country needs.
The country, the Unesco report says, has the highest primary school retention rate at 87 per cent. It has been made possible by a strong investment in the new competency-based education and digital literacy programmes. Educational reforms have also enhanced workforce skills.
The region’s economic giant scores much better than its neighbours in the transition rates at all levels. Kenyan children are, therefore, better off than their counterparts in the region. However, this success is nothing to gloat about, as the entire region is still grappling with significant gaps in enrolment, completion and quality of learning.
The 2026 Global Education Monitoring (GEM) report paints a mixed picture, with the gains in enrolment being overshadowed by inequalities in the developing regions.
Whereas 15 per cent of Kenyan children were out of school at the primary level, Tanzania was at 17 per cent, Uganda at 14, and South Sudan at 64. Some 87 per cent of Kenyan children complete primary school education, against 69 per cent for Rwanda, 76 per cent for Tanzania, and 30 per cent for Uganda.
Less than 25 per cent of children of school-going age are enrolled in pre-primary institutions in the region. Only two-thirds of young people complete secondary school, highlighting major gaps in both early learning and progression.
The primary school completion rates are 52 per cent for boys and 54 per cent for girls. Though access has been expanded through diversified secondary and tertiary education, inequalities persist.
While major gaps in infrastructure and other serious challenges persist, the country’s investment in sustainable education reforms is paying dividends.
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