The government will promote 50,000 teachers in the next financial year as part of a wider plan to improve staffing levels, ease workload pressures, and address long-standing concerns over career progression in the education sector.
Deputy President Kithure Kindiki said the plan has already been captured in the 2026/27 budget following consultations with teachers’ unions, which pushed for a bigger number of promotions than initially proposed.
Speaking on Saturday in Meru, he explained that the earlier target of 25,000 teachers was revised upward to 50,000 after engagement with stakeholders, with the aim of ensuring fair progression for educators who have remained in the same job groups for years.
The Deputy President noted that many teachers have stagnated in one job level for more than a decade, a gap the government now seeks to address through structured promotions and reforms in service delivery.
He added that improving teachers’ welfare remains central to the administration’s education agenda, alongside efforts to reduce workload by hiring more staff and strengthening school support systems.
On health coverage, Kindiki said the government is working on improving benefits under the Social Health Authority to ensure teachers have better access to medical services.
He stressed that a healthy teaching workforce is key to quality education, adding that concerns raised by teachers on health insurance are being fast-tracked for resolution.
Beyond welfare issues, he highlighted increased investment in the education sector, saying the budget has grown significantly from 500 billion shillings in 2022 to 765 billion shillings in the next financial year.
He said the government has employed 100,000 teachers since 2022, with 20,000 more set to be recruited soon, alongside the construction of 23,000 classrooms and 1,600 laboratories.
He also pointed to the recruitment of 3,300 TVET tutors and ongoing reforms aimed at strengthening technical training and expanding access to skills development.
Kindiki further noted that discussions are ongoing on proposals to make Junior Secondary School more independent as part of broader education reforms.