The National Secretary of the Kenya Teachers in Hardship and Arid Areas Welfare Association (KETHAWA), Ndung’u Wangenye, has called out the government for peddling what he termed as a misleading narrative on the full funding of basic education.

Speaking during an interview on Radio Generation’s People Breakfast Show, Wangenye accused the state of abandoning its constitutional responsibility to provide free and quality education to every child, warning that schools across the country remain under-resourced while learners continue to suffer.

“It’s a fallacy to keep telling Kenyans that education is fully funded. The reality on the ground is different schools are barely functioning. Teachers are overstretched, facilities are crumbling, and essential learning materials are lacking,” he said.

He added that despite the billions pumped into the education sector annually, the return on investment remains questionable, as thousands of youths continue to graduate only to join the ranks of the unemployed.

“By 2035, education alone will be consuming over a trillion shillings, and yet our young people are still tarmacking. We’ve poured money into the system, but we’re producing graduates who walk out of school with nothing more than papers,” he said.

Wang’ethe attributed this disconnect to a lack of long-term planning and a failure to integrate education with the country’s broader industrial and economic goals.

He urged the government to reimagine its education investment strategy to include stronger links with the job market and technical skills development.

“We must invest in industries, so that when our children leave school, they walk straight into opportunities not disappointment,” he added.

The KETHAWA official also challenged the government to audit current spending in the education sector, noting that there is little transparency in how funds are allocated or used at the grassroots level.

His remarks come at a time when concerns are rising over the sustainability of the free education program, particularly in light of growing reports about ghost learners, crumbling infrastructure, and rising operational costs in public schools.

Wang’ethe concluded by calling for honest dialogue and urgent reforms, warning that without decisive action, Kenya risks failing an entire generation.