TSC wants Sh2 billion for teacher promotion
Teachers Service Commission Chief Executive Officer Nancy Macharia. The commission needs Sh2 billion to promote tutors.
The Teachers Service Commission (TSC) has requested MPs to allocate Sh2 billion for promoting 12,634 tutors in the 2023/24 financial year.
The commission told the National Assembly Committee on Education that it will need Sh2,175,038,528 to move teachers to new job groups.
According to the estimates that the TSC tabled before the committee, some Sh600 million is needed to promote 4,595 primary school teachers from grade C1 to C2 while Sh1 billion will be required to move 4,750 Diploma holder teachers from grade C2 to C3.
The teachers’ employer will also need Sh400 million to promote 2,637 graduate teachers from grade C3 to C4 and Sh175, 038,528 to promote 652 graduate teachers from grade D3 to D4
TSC Chief Executive Nancy Macharia told the lawmakers that the commission intends to promote 11,258 teachers in the common cadre in the current financial year, subject to availability of funds.
She added that TSC would promote 13,717 teachers on competitive basis and 1,021 using the affirmative action in ASAL and hardship areas policy.
Details provided by the TSC indicate that 4,006 teachers were competitively promoted in the 2019/20 financial year and another 16,032 in the 2020/2021 fiscal year. In the 2019/20 financial year, some 5,034 teachers were promoted on common cadre basis and 94,76 on the same basis in the following fiscal year.
Lawmakers demanded to be informed why some teachers have not been confirmed after acting in many positions for as long as five years.
Lugari MP Nabii Nabwera said the TSC has never informed teachers why they have not been confirmed.
Ms Macharia said teachers who qualify for appointment as institutional administrators must show interest by applying when the commission advertises the positions.
“Deployment of institutional administrators, teachers who have acted as institutional administrators have an added advantage during interviews as they are awarded marks on the number of years they have been acting,” Ms Macharia said.
The CEO told MPs that the policy on the deployment of institutional administrators provides for a clear career progression structure to ensure systematic progression, growth and professional development for all teachers.
A report by the Kenya Union of Post Primary Education (Kuppet) indicates that a total of 6,031 have been holding the positions in acting capacity.
The committee chairman Julius Melly said TSC must develop a mechanism to pay teachers who have been due for promotion but have remained in the same cadre thereby affecting his retirement package.
“How will these teachers be compensated because failure to confirm them means their overall retirement package is affected,” Mr Melly said.
Promotion of teachers in public service is premised on regulation 73 of the code of regulations for teachers, career progression guidelines and the policy on selection and appointment of institutional administrators.
The criteria for promotion includes availability of funds, existence of vacancies in the authorised establishment, merit and ability as reflected in the teachers’ work performance, seniority and experience.
In addition, annual performance records and academic and professional qualifications are also considered before a teacher is promoted.
“Promotions will be done competitively with the objective to recognize and reward effort and performance, align teachers for succession management and motivate employees to perform better in their duties and responsibilities with the aim of improving quality of teaching and learning,” Ms Macharia told MPs.
For purposes of transparency and accountability, Ms Macharia told the committee that the commission will advertise the available slots for interested candidates to apply.
