The government has moved to calm growing public concern over the future of free education, assuring the country that the policy on free primary and secondary schooling remains firmly in place despite recent remarks suggesting otherwise.

In a statement released Friday evening, Basic Education Principal Secretary Julius Bitok said the government has no intention of scrapping free education.

Instead, he said, efforts are underway to work with Parliament to address the existing funding shortfalls that affect capitation, national examinations, and other education-related needs.

“I want to assure the country that the policy on free primary and secondary education has not changed. The Government will continue financing education through capitation as it has done over the years,” Bitok said.

He acknowledged that although the Ministry of Education has received a record allocation of Sh702 billion in the current financial year, the funding is still not enough to fully meet the demands of a growing education sector.

“Growing demand means we must work even harder to ensure these investments reach every learner, especially through capitation. We are continuing to engage Parliament so that we secure the resources needed to support education in this country,” he added.

The statement followed an earlier declaration by Treasury Cabinet Secretary John Mbadi, who told the National Assembly's Education Committee on Thursday that free education is no longer financially viable.

“The problem is we live a lie. President Mwai Kibaki introduced free primary education, then President Uhuru Kenyatta introduced subsidised secondary education, which somehow was escalated to free. The truth is, we do not currently have the capacity to finance free primary and free secondary education,” Mbadi told the committee.

His remarks triggered widespread public backlash, with Kenyans expressing anger and concern over the potential withdrawal of a programme that has long supported children from low-income families and improved access to education nationwide.

Responding to the backlash, Bitok said Mbadi’s remarks had been misunderstood.

He clarified that the Treasury CS was calling for enhanced cooperation between the Executive and Parliament to ensure that education funding remains aligned with the growing needs of learners.

“What he underscored, and what we reaffirm, is the need for closer collaboration with Parliament to ensure education funding keeps pace with the growing needs of our learners,” Bitok said.

Kilifi North MP Owen Baya, who also serves as Deputy Majority Leader in the National Assembly, supported Bitok’s position and reiterated that the government has not changed its policy on public education funding.

“As MPs, we will continue to allocate funds, including for university education,” Baya said.

He further pointed out that the current government has made historic strides in education investment, citing the large-scale recruitment of teachers and expansion of infrastructure.

“Previous governments only hired around 3,000 to 5,000 teachers annually. We are now talking about employing 100,000 teachers in just three years,” he said.