Teacher shortage crisis continues despite large pool of trained educators

As public schools grapple with a deepening teacher shortage, it has emerged that over 300,000 registered teachers are not employed by the Teachers Service Commission (TSC).

This figure includes 134,914 teachers in Early Childhood Development Education (ECDE), 124,061 in primary schools, and 84,510 in post-primary institutions.

The disclosure comes amid warnings from outgoing TSC boss Nancy Macharia, who noted a current deficit of 98,261 teachers—a gap expected to widen further with the rollout of senior secondary schools in 2026.

Macharia blamed the shortfall on inadequate budgetary support.

To improve efficiency, Education Cabinet Secretary Julius Ogamba informed the Senate that the TSC has introduced an online teacher registration portal.

He stressed that teacher recruitment is guided by available funding and approved vacancies.

"In our analysis, the teacher register shows 343,485 registered teachers who are not on the TSC payroll," Ogamba stated in response to Senator Joyce Korir’s query on unemployed teachers.

"This figure includes those working in private institutions or individuals who have chosen alternative career paths," he added.

Ogamba also admitted that the TSC lacks data on ECDE teachers employed by county governments but is in the process of compiling county-specific records of unemployed registered teachers.

Senators raised concerns over the hiring of recent graduates while earlier cohorts remain jobless.

Senate Majority Leader Aaron Cheruiyot called for detailed county-by-county data indicating the graduation years of employed teachers to expose regional imbalances.

"In some counties, graduates from 2017-2018 have been absorbed, yet in others, those who completed training in 2010 remain unemployed," Cheruiyot observed.

Senator Margaret Kamar raised concerns over the TSC’s recruitment criteria, arguing that it often favours more recent graduates at the expense of older ones.

"We have individuals who completed their studies in 2010 and are still jobless, while those who graduated in 2015 or even 2020 are getting hired. Some have waited over a decade," she said.

Ogamba conceded that the system has failed to give adequate priority to earlier graduates.

"It’s true — those who graduated earlier should be considered, but the approach hasn’t been effective," he said.

"Some people remain unemployed for up to 25 years. We're exploring affirmative action measures to support older graduates," he added.

He expressed concern that some trained teachers are reaching retirement without ever securing employment — a situation he described as "deeply frustrating."

Although the TSC claims to prioritise earlier graduates during recruitment to address long-term unemployment and ensure fairness, Ogamba admitted this goal has yet to be fully realised.