Parents in Kathiani sub-county have been urged to take advantage of free primary education and bursaries to take back girls who dropped out of school to study.
Sub-county Deputy Education Officer Nancy Kimatuni said many girls in the area were dropping out of school because of early pregnancies.
Ms Kimatuni who spoke at an event convened to deliberate on challenges facing the girl child said the rate at which girls were dropping out of school was alarming.
She said out of the 8,559 girls who enrolled to class one eight years ago, only 2,985 sat for the Kenya Certificate of Primary Education exams last year.
This means 5,574 dropped out before reaching class eight.
She said it was high time stakeholder take time to address the situation.
The education officer called on teachers to accord girls leadership roles in schools to keep busy and give them a sense of belonging.
The officer also urged the parents not to neglect their daughters’ needs to stop them from engaging in premarital sex in exchange for money.