Usawa Agenda report exposes deep inequalities in Kenya’s JSS system
By Samson Kurgat | NAIROBI,
Kenya has made significant progress in enrolling children in Junior Secondary School, but severe inequalities in learning outcomes, resources, and affordability continue to undermine the transition under the Competency-Based Education (CBE) system, according to a new report by Usawa Agenda.
The inaugural Status of Junior School Education Report 2026, based on the 2025 Foundational Literacy and Numeracy Assessment (FLANA), draws on data from 41,156 households, 1,527 schools, and 49,835 children across all 47 counties, as well as refugee communities.
The report reveals that 96 out of every 100 children aged 12 to 17 are enrolled in school, achieving near gender parity in overall participation. However, access remains uneven, particularly for children with disabilities and those living in marginalized areas. The out-of-school rate among children with disabilities stands at approximately 17%—more than four times the national average of 4%. Garissa County recorded the highest overall out-of-school rate at 22.8%, while absenteeism in refugee communities averaged 13.4%, more than double the national rate.
Beyond access, the report raises urgent concerns over the capacity of Junior Secondary Schools to provide adequate learning environments. The estimated cost of enrolling in a public Junior Secondary School ranges from KES 8,186 in rural areas to KES 11,362 in urban areas, rising to more than KES 21,900 in private schools. School fees account for the largest share of these initial costs. Meanwhile, infrastructure remains critically lacking: only 27.5% of Junior Secondary Schools have functional science laboratories, 27% have libraries, and 34% report receiving adequate learning materials. Private and urban institutions are substantially better equipped than their public and rural counterparts.
The most concerning findings involve foundational learning. Usawa Agenda reports that 27% of Grade 7 learners cannot read a Grade 3-level English story with comprehension, while 33% cannot solve a Grade 3-level math problem. Four in 10 Grade 7 learners lack both competencies. This deficit is most pronounced in public and rural schools, where 42% and 43% of learners, respectively, lack both foundational skills—compared with 31% in private schools and 36% in urban schools.
Regional disparities are equally stark. In the North Eastern region, 64% of Grade 7 learners lack both foundational literacy and numeracy skills, compared with 36% in the Western region. In numeracy alone, 63% of Grade 7 learners in North Eastern cannot solve a Grade 3-level problem—nearly double the national rate. Although these gaps narrow by Grade 9, they remain significant: 18% still cannot read with comprehension, and 22% cannot solve basic math problems, with rural and public school students continuously trailing behind.
The report also highlights severe imbalances in teacher deployment. Urban Junior Secondary Schools average seven teachers compared to four in rural areas, with the North Eastern region recording the lowest staffing levels overall. Nationally, women make up 50.6% of the Junior Secondary School teaching workforce; however, male teachers dominate STEM disciplines, accounting for 63.3% of teachers in those subjects.
Usawa Agenda emphasizes that these findings must serve as a direct baseline for action rather than a passive assessment of the education system. The organization urges policymakers to prioritize affordability, infrastructure, learning materials, equitable teacher distribution, and targeted support for marginalized regions. While Kenya has largely succeeded in bringing children into the classroom, the report concludes that the critical challenge now is ensuring those classrooms are properly equipped to deliver foundational learning.
