Hundreds of youths from Borabu Sub County in Nyamira have urged the county government to consider investing in education as a way of making education affordable to many children from needy backgrounds.
Led by Nyamira Universities' students Association Kepha Mayieka, who was speaking on Monday, the young students said the county had failed to promote education in the region, forcing many children to reportedly bow out of schools due to inability to pay school fee.
They urged the county government to consider increasing the education budget from the current Sh200 million to sh400 million as a way of reaching many children who are in dire need of education.
“We understand that education docket hasn’t been devolved but it’s important that the county puts focus on it. A county with few children accessing higher education is doomed to fail. The allocation in the education docket should be increased from Sh200 million to at least Sh400 million. But at the moment, the docket is doing badly,” Mayieka said.
They challenged the controller of budget to formalise Community Development Fund, which had been endorsed by the education committee in the Nyamira County Assembly, that aims at empowering MCAs with the ability to fund education and other services at the grassroots level.
“We understand that the controller of budget hasn’t signed the proposed community development fund that targets to improve services such as education, but that doesn’t mean the county relaxes in supporting education. They ought to invest more in the sector as a means of giving many youths who are ready to learn a second chance,” he added.