The Office of the Auditor-General carried out a monumental audit that uncovered a systemic breakdown in the public school textbook supply chain in Kenya, and it showed that Sh458.2 million that was allocated to essential learning materials practically disappeared owing to procurement and distribution mishaps, thus sounding a serious warning in the education sector.
The special audit, which took into account the capitation and infrastructure grants for the 2020/21 to 2023/24 financial years, uncovered a major lack of planning, supervision, and implementation by both the Kenya Institute of Curriculum Development (KICD) and the State Department for Basic Education, which, in turn, eliminated textbook access for a big number of students.
The report indicated that besides spending Sh295.6 million on textbooks that were not delivered, the students and schools were put at a very serious disadvantage; the government had made payments to the publishers who were allowed to supply the texts.
Secondary, junior, and primary schools were all impacted, with shortages varying from one institution to another in terms of the number of titles to more than 1,400 copies being unaccounted for.
The audit also mentioned Sh30.34 million wasted on books for subjects not offered in the schools receiving them and Sh41.42 million gone when the publishers chosen did not supply the prescribed textbooks at all.
In addition, the time for delivery was so often prolonged by as much as 37 months that, in effect, the learners were getting the books long after the syllabus had been completed.
The report highlighted that, among other things, deliveries exceeded the normal amount by a large margin, and these unneeded deliveries were worth around Sh90.8 million.
This chaotic planning and monitoring of the program was signaled by deliveries that were sent to institutions lacking proper justification. The unorganized stocktaking and poor record keeping only worsened the situation, while at least 110 schools could not show proof of receiving the necessary texts.
Nancy Gathungu, the Auditor-General, in her report, heavily criticized KICD’s strategic framework for not being clear about its textbook procurement plans and the Ministry of Education for not having a proper accounting system for its capitation fund allocation and monitoring.
Educational stakeholders are sounding alarm bells that the mishandling, which has become systemic, is bound to affect learning outcomes and academic performance of the whole country. They are therefore calling for immediate reforms and accountability measures that will not only stop the rot of public resources but also ensure that the learners get the materials they need urgently.
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