Uncertainty hangs over the administration of this year’s national examinations after the Kenya Union of Post-Primary Education Teachers (Kuppet) maintained a directive to its members to keep off over unresolved grievances.
This comes days before the Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) examinations, with rehearsals set to begin on Friday.
Questions remain on whether the standoff over examiners’ terms and conditions of service will be resolved before the start of the tests on October 19.
According to the timetable, the first week will feature oral and practical examinations, including French, German, Arabic, Kenyan Sign Language and music. The large candidature KCSE papers will begin on November 2, with the examinations scheduled to conclude on November 20.
In a resolution issued after its National Governing Council meeting, Kuppet expressed concern over the handling of its members’ grievances by the Kenya National Examinations Council (Knec).
“We are asking our members to sit back and not to participate in any exams conducted by Knec. And if they don’t give any assurances to improve the examiners’ terms and conditions of service, today we put Knec on notice and it will not be business as usual in the year 2026. We shall ensure that we paralyse the examination management in the entire year 2026,” said Kuppet Secretary-General Akelo Misori.
The union’s position comes as teachers involved in examination administration continue to raise concerns over remuneration. The rates for centre managers, supervisors, invigilators, examiners and other contracted staff are reviewed every four years, and they are due for review next year.
On July 7, the National Treasury released Sh1.5 billion to settle the balances for 2025, with Education Cabinet Secretary Julius Ogamba announcing two days later that Knec had disbursed the money to examiners’ accounts. The payments followed months of delays that had prompted teachers’ unions to threaten a boycott of this year’s examinations.
However, the July payments have not ended the dispute over examiners’ remuneration, with Kuppet now demanding broader assurances on their terms and conditions of service. The union’s latest directive raises questions about whether the outstanding grievances extend beyond the marking allowances that were settled earlier this year.
“Even construction workers on site who are unskilled are paid at least Sh700 by the end of the day. But you realise that Knec treats professionals as if they are such a category of workers,” Mr Misori said.
He termed the rates a mockery of the teaching profession, warning that teachers would no longer accept the same terms and subsequently complain about delayed payments and inadequate compensation.
Kenya Union of Post Primary Education Teachers (Kuppet) Deputy Secretary-General Moses Nthurima.
Photo credit: File | Nation Media Group
Kuppet Deputy Secretary-General Moses Nthurima warned that the administration of national examinations could face a crisis if Knec fails to address examiners’ grievances.
“We are telling our teachers to refrain from engaging in Knec activities until they call us and discuss better terms for them,” he said.
He accused the council of subjecting examiners to poor working conditions and said the remuneration offered for marking examinations was inadequate.
“For example, you find that a paper is being marked at Sh55. They are giving you a pocket allowance of Sh150, which was being given in 1990,” he said.
Mr Nthurima said examination supervisors were paid Sh600, while other payments for exam-related duties remained too low to reflect the work involved.
Knec Chief Executive Officer David Njeng’ere did not immediately respond to our questions on Kuppet’s threat.
