The
Secondary School Education Bursary Fund (SEBF) was established
in 1993/4 through a Presidential pronouncement. SEBF aims
to cushion the country’s poor and vulnerable groups
against the high and increasing cost of secondary education,
therefore reducing inequalities. It also aims to increase
enrolment in (and completion of) secondary school. The fund
targets orphans and girl children as well as those from poor
households and urban slums, who are able to achieve good
results. Students send their applications through their respective
school heads. SEBF is not based on a fixed share of the national
budget. Allocations vary depending on the Ministry of Education’s
annual provisions, the number of students enrolled in secondary
schools within each constituency, national secondary school
enrolments and poverty indices. Since 2003/4, SEBF has been
coordinated by Constituency Bursary Committees, which screen
potential beneficiaries, coordinate and disburse the funds,
and prepare reports to the Ministry of Education.
Local
community leaders are represented on SEBF committees. Affirmative
action ensures a minimum of Ksh 500,000 is allocated to constituencies
in Arid and Semi Arid Lands (ASAL). The minimum annual allocation
per beneficiary by school category is as follows: Ksh 5,000
for day schools; Ksh 10,000 for boarding schools; and Ksh
15,000 for national schools.
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