{"id":624590,"url":"http://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/624590/?format=json","text_counter":277,"type":"speech","speaker_name":"Hon. Okoth","speaker_title":"","speaker":{"id":12482,"legal_name":"Kenneth Odhiambo Okoth","slug":"kenneth-odhiambo-okoth"},"content":"Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker. I appreciate the opportunity. I will also try to contribute quickly to this Report by the President. My first comment comes from Page 65, Item 190 of the Report, where the President says that the transition rate to secondary school has improved to 78 per cent. We need to make commitment to get that to 100 per cent to meet the requirements of the Constitution for free and compulsory basic education up to Form Four. That is important. The free registration for examination in public primary and secondary schools is a good initiative, but it is also discriminatory against children who do not have access to Government schools and are forced to attend what are now known as informal schools or the alternative providers of basic education schools. Towards this constitutional commitment of access to education, the Government must make sure that beginning this year, we fully budget for this. The President has promised that in five years, he envisions a Kenya with free secondary education. We need to pull that sooner. On the issue of exam fees, as we wait for full free primary and secondary education, we can start by next year making sure that we waive examination fees for all children in all schools. The Government needs to come up with a formal policy for private/public partnerships in education to make sure that the transition and completion rate from primary to secondary school is higher. That would help a lot. All the partners who are providing support to education of children should also get the capitation per child that they are educating. That will help relieve the burden on parents. Item 196 talks about informal settlements, slum upgrading and investment in their social infrastructure. As a Member who represents Kibra Constituency, this is a project that would benefit our people, but it is going to slow. The Government has to come up with a more radical approach to it to make sure that the benefits of the housing upgrading in Kibra and similar places The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor."}