Kenya’s rollout of the Competency-Based Curriculum (CBC) has come under fresh criticism, with Policy and Strategy Advisor at the Elimu Bora Working Group, Boaz Waruku, warning that the system was hurriedly introduced under the influence of commercial interests, leaving public schools grappling with serious challenges.
Speaking on Radio Generation on Friday, Waruku said the current situation has placed a heavy burden on families relying on public education, arguing that the hardships they face are a result of poor leadership and failure to learn from past mistakes.
“The majority of Kenyans who take their children to public schools are suffering… not because of their own making, but because of neglect and leadership that does not learn lessons from the past,” he said.
Waruku linked the troubled rollout to what he described as pressure to spend a Sh12 billion education reform grant, claiming the process was driven by textbook procurement deals rather than proper groundwork.
“We launched CBC through textbook contracts,” he said, explaining that publishers were awarded tenders before the necessary systems and structures were put in place.
He noted that this approach led to confusion in schools, with poorly developed learning materials and widespread logistical problems. “You are producing new materials… you don’t have a curriculum framework… and the books that were published were incoherent,” he said. In some cases, schools received books for subjects they did not offer, including foreign language titles, while others were supplied with materials containing errors.
Waruku further accused authorities of placing business interests ahead of education outcomes. “CBC is about tender and business… not fixing education and making it elimu bora,” he stated.
He also raised concerns over what he described as a lack of reliable data to guide reforms, pointing to an admission by the Cabinet Secretary that there was “no idea… how much it costs to educate a child” at different levels of learning.
Beyond the rollout challenges, Waruku faulted the government for failing to establish key oversight bodies required under the Basic Education Act. He singled out the Education Standards and Quality Assurance Council and the National Education Board, saying their absence has left a major gap in monitoring and policy direction.
“These two critical agencies have not been established… who is doing that role now? No one,” he said, warning that without proper oversight, the system lacks accountability and direction.
His remarks come at a time when textbook procurement remains under scrutiny. Parliament had earlier stopped the distribution of Grade 10 books linked to a multi-billion shilling tender over concerns about inflated costs and unpaid debts to publishers, and ordered an audit into the process.
The situation has disrupted learning across schools, with delays in payments—now exceeding Sh11 billion—slowing down the production and delivery of materials needed for the transition to senior school under CBC.
Waruku warned that unless the government urgently addresses planning failures and accountability gaps, the country risks locking itself into a cycle of weak reforms and declining standards in education.
