An audit aimed at plugging leaks in education funding will be tabled in the National Assembly this month, potentially unmasking a capitation racket driven by ghost schools and learners and inflated enrolments.
Basic Education Principal Secretary Julius Bitok said the Ministry of Education has concluded a nationwide verification to clean up the database.
“We are cross-checking the data and deploying teams on the ground to validate the figures,” Prof Bitok said.
“There are significant discrepancies between earlier capitation numbers and the current findings. The ministry is refining the data to ensure the report tabled in the National Assembly is accurate.”
Headteachers verify their school enrolment details captured by the Ministry of Education during the 2025 Kepsha Annual Delegates Conference in Mombasa on November 11, 2025.
Photo credit: Kevin Odit | Nation Media Group
Prof Bitok added that once the report is released, Kenyans will know the actual data for basic learning institutions.
The PS confirmed that all schools have submitted their data for verification and received funds under the free education programme.
The audit was called after an investigation uncovered at least 87,000 fictitious learners in public schools – an anomaly estimated to have cost the taxpayer Sh1 billion in the last year.
A special report by the Auditor-General showed falsified enrolment figures cost the country more than Sh4 billion in free basic education funds in the last four years.
“When the ministry receives data, it sends officers to physically confirm it. We have sampled a number. What we are working on is re-confirming the data received. We do not want to release an inaccurate report. We should be having a robust report this January that will be presented to Parliament,” the PS said.
The audit led to delays in the disbursement of free primary and day secondary education funds during the third term of last year, as the ministry froze payments to suspicious institutions.
Appearing before the National Assembly in November, Education Cabinet Secretary Julius Ogamba said the rot went deeper than the inflated numbers.
The minister added that 10 schools in 10 counties were found to have no learners despite receiving funds from the government.
National Assembly Speaker, Moses Wetang’ula, told Mr Ogamba to discipline officers involved in the fraud.
Lawmakers questioned the pace of the investigations, saying the ministry should have already identified the culprits.
“There are officers from your ministry in every county whose duty is to keep and continuously update school records and submit them to your ministry,” the Speaker told Mr Ogamba.
“Public funds have been wired to non-existent schools and learners. How many officers have you interdicted?”
Education Cabinet Secretary Julius Ogamba.
Photo credit: File | Nation Media Group
With just 600 quality assurance officers and 200 auditors overseeing more than 53,000 basic learning institutions, the ministry said monitoring has been severely stretched, with the situation made worse by a lack of transport for officers in remote regions.
Mr Ogamba told MPs that heads would roll, adding that the final verified list would be handed to investigative agencies, including the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) and the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI).
To seal the loopholes, the ministry will retire the National Education Management Information System (Nemis) and replace it with the Kenya Education Management Information System (Kemis), which goes live on January 9.
“The officers said there are challenges with Nemis and recommended that the system be upgraded. Because Nemis is not an intelligent system, it was rigid and not integrated with others,” Mr Ogamba told the House.
“Kemis is a comprehensive management system that covers basic education, higher education and all education agencies, including the Kenya National Examinations Council (Knec) and the Teachers Service Commission (TSC), becoming a one-stop solution.”
Kemis is an integrated platform that follows a learner’s journey from early childhood to the highest level of education.
It is designed to eliminate examination irregularities, identity theft of public funds and flag fake certificates.
“The agile system will help us truly manage data in the ministry. It will reduce inefficiencies,” Prof Bitok said.
He added that the intelligent system was recommended by the Presidential Working Party on Education Reforms.
“Technology is the solution to these systemic inefficiencies. With technology, you can solve many problems, including examination irregularities and the issue of fake certificates. Kemis is a game-changer,” he added.
The government has informed Kenyans that the first term of the academic year that begins on Monday will be fully funded.
Prof Bitok said a request for Sh44 billion has been submitted to the National Treasury to cover primary, junior and senior school capitation.
He admitted that there have been delays in the disbursement of funds for free primary and free day secondary education schooling.
However, he said the Ministries of Education and National Treasury are working to ensure timely disbursement.
Approved annual capitation rates are: primary school – Sh1,420 per learner; junior school – Sh15,042; and senior school – Sh22,244.
