Prime
Nursery closure: Parents enrol children in Kenyan schools
What you need to know:
- It later allowed candidate classes to resume and recently allowed semi-candidate classes to report next month.
- However, this week, a leaked document revealed that other classes will report in a staggered manner while nursery classes are to wait until a vaccines are procured.
Mr Godfrey Barasa on Tuesday crossed the Ugandan border to seek a vacancy for his children at St Mary’s Nursery School in Busia, Kenya.
Mr Barasa, a trader at the Busia border, told Daily Monitor that he decided to take his children to study in Kenya because he is unsure of when the Ugandan government will allow pre-primary pupils to resume learning.
Government in March last year closed schools to combat the spread of Covid-19.
It later allowed candidate classes to resume and recently allowed semi-candidate classes to report next month.
However, this week, a leaked document revealed that other classes will report in a staggered manner while nursery classes are to wait until a vaccines are procured.
“It is now a year since schools were closed due to Covid-19 and we have stayed home with our children. We are tired of watching education opportunities waste away [for our children],” Mr Barasa said.
He is one of the many parents at the Busia border who have opted to take their children to Kenya where learning has opened for all classes.
It is estimated that more than 400 children from Uganda may have enrolled in Kenya schools since January as a result of restrictions on opening of schools in the country.
The main destinations for the Ugandan children are St Mary’s Nursery and Primary School, St Joseph School, Ebenezer, Agape Junior School and Busia Township Primary School.
Ms Maria Goretti Ngaso, the head teacher of St Mary’s Nursery in Busia Kenya, said since mid-January, they have enroled about 100 children from Uganda, with majority joining kindergatten.
“We are having a large number of children from Uganda enroling in our school and many parents are coming for vacancies for their children,” she said.
Ms Ngaso added that they have not recorded any coronavirus cases like it has happened in other schools in Nairobi where authorities had to close after children and teachers tested positive for Covid-19.
Ms Esther Nafula, another parent, said it was hard for parents to help their children learn from home because they lack teaching skills and ‘time’ to fully supervise their children.
Kenyan buses pick up the children from their homes every morning and take them to Kenya and return them in the evening.
Ms Mary Ajambo, a trader at the Busia border, whose grandchildren are in nursery, said they (children) are woken up before 6am to prepare before the buses arrive.
“We have buses arriving here by 6:30am, so we try waking up and preparing the children early enough before the buses arrive,” she said, adding that they are paying about Kshs17,000 (about Shs500,000), in addition to providing masks and sanitisers to the learners.
Mr Dennis Bwire, a parent, urged government to allow all the children to get back to school despite the fear of contracting Covid-19.
“Kenya has recorded the highest numbers of Covid-19 cases and death but has opened all classes; while in Tanzania, learning is ongoing,” Mr Bwire said.
Govt position
Recently, the First Lady and Minister of Education, Ms Janet Museveni, said whereas the parents are free to take their children to study from wherever they wish, the government would not take responsibility in case of any eventualities.
