The fate of more than 3,500 learners in the insecure Kerio Valley remains uncertain as non-local teachers continue to avoid schools, fearing for their lives amid a resurgence of killings by armed criminals.
This is despite government assurances of their safety.
The safety of learners in schools located near volatile borders is also in question, despite ongoing security operations.
Recent killings—including those of a Catholic priest, a construction worker, and a mechanic—have worsened the situation. Many non-locals have fled the region, fearing they are being targeted by armed criminals who suspect them of spying and providing intelligence to authorities.
Some non-local teachers who fled after the latest attacks have yet to return, disrupting learning in more than 54 primary and 13 secondary schools, according to Daniel Serem, the Kenya Primary School Head Teachers Association (Kepsha) secretary for Elgeyo Marakwet County.
“As we speak, some teachers have not reported back to their schools, and learning has been disrupted. The few teachers available are doing their best to keep the schools running. The State has deployed security officers to affected schools to enhance safety,” he said.
Father Allois Cheruiyot Bett who was shot dead by an unknown assailant in Tot, Kerio Valley on May 22, 2025.
He noted that all schools in Kerio Valley have reopened except Tot Secondary, which remained closed following the killing of the priest. However, the teacher shortage persists.
Last week, the Kenya Union of Post Primary Education Teachers (Kuppet) and the Kenya National Union of Teachers (Knut) instructed teachers in the region to withdraw their services until their safety could be guaranteed.
Led by Kuppet Secretary Paul Biwott, union leaders last Friday said that they would not allow teachers to work under the threat of violence.
“For that reason, all schools in Kerio Valley will remain closed until teachers are assured of their safety. That is non-negotiable,” he said.
Marakwet Knut branch secretary John Cheberi and his Kuppet counterpart Biwott confirmed that many teachers who had fled remain hesitant to return.
“Despite the government's assurance of security, most non-local teachers are afraid to come back, especially after the priest's killing. No one wants to risk their life,” said Mr Biwott.
Mr Cheberi stressed that teachers and learners are entitled to State protection. “We are closing all institutions in the volatile areas until the government assures us of safety. If bandits can shoot a priest, how safe are our teachers and pupils?”
However, during a public baraza at Chesongoch in Kerio Valley on Sunday, the unions toned down their stance following renewed government assurances. The meeting was attended by Deputy Inspector-General of Police Eliud Lagat, Elgeyo Marakwet Governor Wesley Rotich, Nandi Governor Stephen Sang, Woman Representative Caroline Ng’elechei, Marakwet East MP Kangogo Bowen, and other leaders.
For years, learning in Kerio Valley has been disrupted due to recurring insecurity, with schools often closing for extended periods during flare-ups and reopening only when calm returns.
Officials inspect Ngaratuko Primary School in Baringo North Constituency on May 13, 2024. The school was closed in February 2024 due to persistent attacks by bandits, sand it was later vandalised.
Photo credit: File | Nation
Bandits have long targeted both teachers and students. Non-local teachers in border schools have been especially affected, with many fleeing for safety.
Teachers from warring communities who work in rival counties are particularly vulnerable, often accused of being informants during attacks.
In one past incident, a head teacher who had served in Kerio Valley for over a decade was forced to flee after being accosted by criminals at Kerio Bridge on the border between Marakwet East and Tiaty West sub-counties.
He reported the incident to the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) and received permission from the Ministry of Education to leave.
In 2023, visually impaired primary school head teacher Thomas Kibet was shot dead by armed criminals in Namba area.
He was travelling with his wife and child on a motorcycle to an event at Kipcherere Secondary School when they were ambushed.
That same year, Elijah Simotwo, the deputy head teacher of Tuluk Primary School in Baringo North, was found dead near Tuluk shopping centre. He had gunshot wounds and police suspected he was killed in a bandit attack.
In February 2022, armed criminals ambushed a Tot High School bus on the Arror-Tot road, killing the driver and injuring more than 15 students and teachers.
Despite these challenges, some progress has been made. Locals acknowledge the impact of Operation Maliza Uhalifu North Rift, led by the National Police Service and Kenya Defence Forces (KDF), as well as efforts to rehabilitate vandalised schools.
"Schools within Aroo Sub-County that were worst hit by bandits are now operational thanks to increased KDF-led security operations," said Margaret Arot, a resident of Kainuk in Turkana County.
The region also recently welcomed the new Lobokat Girls Secondary School, built by the World Bank and the Government of Kenya through the Kenya National Highways Authority.
The school, officially opened on May 19, 2025, is a milestone in girls’ education in a region once plagued by attacks on women and children.
An police reservist at the Baringo County Referral Hospital in Kabarnet on May 2, 2025. He was injured in a bandit attack in Chemoe village, Baringo North.
Photo credit: File | Nation
However, vandalised schools such as Nakuse and Napeitom continue to struggle with low enrolment, as many parents remain fearful despite the State’s reassurances.
“We have beefed up security at Nakuse, Napeitom, and Kapedo Girls, and learning has resumed. I urge parents to send their children back to school,” said Turkana County Commissioner Julius Kavita.
Suguta Deputy County Commissioner Franklin Ongori confirmed that Kapedo Girls Primary School, closed in January 2017, reopened in February this year with increased security.
In Turkana County, years of banditry in Turkana South and Turkana East constituencies have disrupted education, with schools turned into battlefields and vandalised.
In 2023, bandits gang-raped a pregnant teacher in Kainuk and later killed an 11-year-old pupil at Agape Kainuk Primary School. In November of the same year, two pupils were injured during an invasion at Philadelphia Primary and Agape Academy.
In neighbouring West Pokot County, relative calm has returned to schools that were previously affected by violence.
These include Cheptulel Boys Secondary and Lonyangalem Primary schools, now guarded by National Police Reservists (NPR). Cheptulel Boys is the school that former Chief of Defence Forces Francis Ogolla visited before his fatal chopper crash.
Closed in December 2022, Cheptulel Boys reopened on January 24, 2025. During the unrest, learners and teachers had fled to Surumben Primary School, over 50 kilometres away.
West Pokot County Commissioner Khalif Abdulahi says the government has created a secure learning environment.
Cheptulel Girls, Samplomoi, Cheratek, Kases, Arpollo, and Takaiywa schools—situated along the Elgeyo Marakwet border—were among those renovated by the government after being vandalised by bandits.
Cheptulel Boys Principal James Koitolo said the KDF presence at the school has restored confidence among students and staff. Last year, 29 candidates sat for their KCSE exams at the school.
Similarly, Lonyangalem Primary School in North Pokot Sub-County, along the West Pokot-Turkana border, has reopened after its May 2023 closure. Bandits had vandalised the facility, forcing villagers to flee to Songok village, 20 kilometres away. Reopened on January 4, 2025, the school now hosts only 30 learners—down from 264 in 2023.
“It was hell here in 2023. We couldn’t sleep at night. We had to close the school because pupils and teachers were too afraid,” recalled deputy head teacher Emanuel Murgor.
Reporting by Florah Koech, Sammy Lutta and Oscar Kakai
