Wamuzi News Ke
President William Ruto has asserted that free education is no longer financially sustainable in Kenya, which led to political debates about government priorities and access to learning.
He made this statement at a public event in Nakuru County, where the Head of State pointed out that the government cannot bear the cost of education for all learners given the tight budget and the current economic situation.
While speaking during the Nyota Business Start-Up Capital disbursement, Ruto pointed out the government has indeed increased the budget for education from around KSh 500 billion to KSh 700 billion, but even at that level, they still cannot meet the national demand fully.
“There is no way we can make education totally free since we do not have the necessary funds. It is time we were truthful with ourselves,” he said to the audience and noted that the total payment of tuition fees at all levels would be too much for the country’s public finances.
The President’s comments create a backdrop of discussions on the government’s imminent cuts and delays in funding for public schools that will affect the 2026 academic year, and some lawmakers have already alerted that the allocation for students is too little to maintain good learning standards.
Kiharu MP Ndindi Nyoro has branded the government a liar when it comes to the funding levels and has cautioned that if the actual resources are not released as promised, parents might organize themselves and even protest.
Ruto resorted to historical lessons, which, when attempting to completely cover tertiary education costs, nearly made public universities collapse, arguing a strong economy must be the first condition for Kenya to be able to afford universal free education. He stressed the current way of doing things as a triangle of government, the parents, and the other stakeholders, instead of a complete state takeover of education financing.
The president’s open confession has sparked a national debate, where civil society groups, teachers’ unions, and parents’ organizations are demanding clarification on how the government intends to balance constitutional rights to free basic education with scarce resources.
Critics are of the view that the announcement may lead to a deeper inequality and that the less fortunate will be the ones to be discriminated against, while the government affirms that the essential education services will always have the funding.
The controversy has grown, and the educational funding model in Kenya is now becoming the major issue around which the national policy discussions and the political debates leading to the elections in 2027 will revolve.
