Parents with children in secondary schools in Gusii regions have been urged to prioritise paying school fees to guarantee learners the opportunity to complete their basic education and attain better results.
Speaking separately at different learning institutions in the area, the school heads said timely clearance of school fees would allow the institutions to work effectively to avoid interrupting learners from school.
The school heads acknowledged that students who are never interrupted while in school tend to perform well in their studies and this includes their over performance in exams.
Rigoma Girls’ Secondary School, Principal, Alice Onyuoki, urged parents to prioritise paying fees to enable the school to run smoothly. She disclosed that the school that registered 73 candidates got a mean grade of 6.7 in the 2024 exams.
She added that a timely payment of schools helps the schools to improve their infrastructure and do their procurement in time. Mrs. Onyuoki, nevertheless commended the church sponsors for volunteering to assist the needy children, including two pregnant girls.
Amasege SDA Mixed Secondary School, Principal,Robinson Matara in Masaba South Sub-county in Gusii County, said learning institutions face a myriad of challenges when parents fail to clear school fees in time, including lack of food like maize and beans.
Matara noted that the cost of items went up three years ago and were yet to fully recover, including the cost of a bag of maize that rose from KSh2,800 to KSh4,500, while a 50-kg sack of sugar increased from KSh4,500 to Sh6,000.
The Amasege, who is also the area Kenya Secondary School Heads Association Chair, urged all stakeholders, including the government, which is supposed to release capitation, to play their part responsibly to ensure the learning process was smooth.
Mobamba Mixed Secondary School, Deputy Principal, Robert Mwaniki, lauded the neighbouring community for ensuring a conducive learning environment for students, saying it helped the 499 learners to achieve good results.
He said the five students who had less than 200 marks in their KCPE exams managed a C plus. Ichuni Girls Secondary School Principal Dr Benidnah Ogeto said the school in Masaba South Sub County had 840 students and managed a mean of 7.8, up from the previous 6.6.
She said clearance of fees coupled with guidance and counselling went a long way to complement the dedication of teachers in performing their duties to deliver good grades.
