NAIROBI, Feb. 7 (Xinhua) -- Kenya's ministry of education has set aside funds to ensure that a 100 percent transition rate from primary to secondary schools is achieved by 2020, officials said on Thursday.
Amina Mohamed, cabinet secretary for education, said that universal high school enrollment is embedded in a policy framework aimed at bridging skills gap in the country in order to hasten transition to knowledge based economy.
"We are determined to realize 100 percent transition from primary to secondary schools and there are policy guidelines, adequate resources and manpower to support that move," said Mohamed.
She spoke during the launch of a campaign to promote high school enrollment among under-privileged children in arid and semi-arid counties.
Mohamed said that political goodwill coupled with investments in learning facilities and subsidized tuition fees have boosted high school enrollment for both boys and girls.
"This year alone, we have realized 87 percent enrollment rate while some counties have recorded upwards of 97 percent high school enrollment among pupils who cleared primary school education last year," said Mohamed.
She decried low enrollment in arid and semi-arid counties linked to poverty, harmful cultural practices like early marriages, under-investment in modern learning facilities, insecurity and climatic shocks.
"The government is determined to tackle bottlenecks to universal secondary school enrollment like teenage pregnancies, prohibitive tuition fees and inadequate infrastructure," said Mohamed.
