National Assembly Speaker Moses Wetang'ula has warned that rampant duplication and pilferage in bursary allocations is undermining education funding in Kenya, calling for urgent reforms to centralize and harmonize disbursement of funds.
Speaking during the 2026 Legislative Retreat in Naivasha, Nakuru County, Wetangula said uncoordinated bursary schemes run by multiple institutions have created wastage, cartels, and deep inequities in access to education support.
Addressing Members of Parliament and Cabinet ministers, the Speaker said lawmakers had raised “very pertinent issues” on the inequitable distribution of education resources, including teachers and funding. He cited extreme disparities across schools, noting cases where one school has 28 teachers for 100 students while another has only two teachers serving more than 300 learners.
“There must be some rationalization to balance the country,” Wetang'ula said.
Turning to bursaries, the Speaker described the system as one of the biggest sources of financial leakage in the education sector.
“One of the biggest pilferages of money is bursaries,” he said, listing multiple actors involved in issuing education aid.
“The MCA is giving bursary. The MP is giving bursary. The governor is giving bursary. The ministry is giving bursary. There is a presidential bursary kitty. Banks are giving money for bursaries. Women reps are giving bursary. Everybody is duplicating the same thing over and over.”
Wetangula argued that the duplication not only wastes public resources but also encourages abuse and patronage networks.
“If this money was put in one basket and administered properly, we will not be having these problems,” he said, warning that “there are myriads of cartels that are benefiting from this multiple effort in the same direction.”
He acknowledged that political pressure has discouraged reforms, with elected leaders often fearing backlash from constituents.
“These MPs fear their constituents. If you don’t give the money, they will vote you out,” Wetang'ula said, describing how students and parents move from one office to another collecting multiple bursaries for the same learner.
Despite the political risks, the Speaker urged the Education Ministry to show courage and take decisive action. “If you manage to centralize and harmonize the disbursement of funds, I assure you, you can easily pay for the education of every child in this country without looking for money elsewhere,” he said.
Wetangula directed that the issues raised be referred to Parliament’s Education Committee, saying he would convene a meeting with committee leadership and the ministry to develop policy proposals.
The recommendations, he said, would be brought back to the House for debate to ensure a fair, efficient, and transparent bursary system that supports all learners equitably.
