It was a relief for families from poor backgrounds after Nakuru County released Sh440 million bursary for the needy students in the devolved unit.
Governor Susan Kihika said that this was the first tranche of the 2025 bursary programme aimed at ensuring students from poor backgrounds accessed quality education and assured that all deserving cases would benefit from the fund that targets 46,345 students across the County.
Ms. Kihika added that her government had already reached out to some of the beneficiaries in Naivasha and Nakuru Town West Sub-counties in addition to issuing cheques to Gilgil Day Secondary School in Gilgil Sub-County.
“One of the pillars of my administration is to ensure that no deserving child is denied the right to access education,” stated Ms. Kihika.
In a speech read on her behalf by Deputy Governor David Kones, Ms Kihika pledged to ensure that applicants who did not receive the bursaries last year were given first priority this time adding that they were working on the need basis with low-income settlement areas expected to take the largest proportion.
The Governor indicated that the bursary programme would relieve parents of the burden of paying school fees and also aid the government’s efforts towards achieving its 100 per cent transition policy.
She said the County was issuing cheques for amounts ranging between Sh5,000 to Sh10,000 depending on the level of need of the parents, but stressed the need for transparency in the bursary allocation process to ensure that every deserving student received support.
Ms. Kihika urged residents across all 11 Sub-Counties to engage in economic activities, stressing the importance of self-sustainability in meeting the educational needs of their children.
The Governor at the same time, affirmed her administration’s commitment to making significant investments in tertiary institutions to accommodate the increasing number of students seeking higher education.
She pledged to ensure that the County continued supporting Vocational Training Colleges through the Sh30,000 capitation fund per trainee, ensure infrastructural improvement, equipping, and staffing of the centres, in addition to building a workforce that will propel Nakuru County to an economic giant in the future.
Ms Kihika indicated that her administration was working out a partnership with several private companies aimed at equipping students in Youth Polytechnics and Technical Vocational Education Training Institutes (TVETs) with hands-on skills in an industry setting during their time of study.
She said that the venture was geared towards bridging the skills gap among TVET graduates by ensuring that students spent at least 50 per cent of their training working with relevant industries.
Governor Kihika also emphasized the growing need for students to pursue technical education in light of the rising number of high school graduates and the country facing a shortage of skilled technicians.
The County boss said her government was championing a dual Technical Vocational Education Training (TVET) programme, which means an educational approach that combines theoretical classroom instruction with practical workplace training.
The Governor pointed out that her leadership was keen to merge skills with certificates so that those with skills are given recognition and those with papers could be equipped with the necessary skills to drive this economy forward.
By Esther Mwangi