MINISTRY OF EDUCATION

State Department for Basic Education

All Principals Secondary Schools

All Head Teachers Primary & Junior Schools

Thro’

The Regional Directors of Education

The County Directors of Education (to be shared in soft copy)

RE:      ESSAY WRITING COMPETITION ON THE EMPLOYMENT AND LABOUR RELATIONS COURT (ELRC)

Kindly refer to our earlier communication ref MOE.HQS/3/4/16 Vol. II dated 9^th June, 2025 on the above subject.  This is to kindly let you know that the deadline for the submission of essay has been extended to 1^st August, 2025.

The Employment and Labour Relations Court is scheduled to hold its third Employment and Labour Relations Annual Symposium and Exhibition (ELRASE 3) from 15^th to 19^th September, 2025.

The theme for the symposium is “Progress made and further immediate action to prohibit and eliminate all forms, including worst forms of child labour”.  The completion presents a valuable opportunity for the students to raise awareness, express their perspectives creatively and engage in meaningful discourse on this important social issue.  Additionally, participation will enrich their educational experience and promote values of empathy and social responsibility among our learners.

In this regard, the ELRC invites pupils and students in primary, junior school and secondary schools to participate in compositions writing competition on the subject of elimination of child labour including worst forms of child labour.

The Procedure and conditions for participation are as follows:

1. Pupils and students in both public and private schools are eligible to participate.
2. The teachers in participating schools will assess the compositions and submit only one composition assessed as the best composition.
3. The submission shall be made to the Registrar, ELRC email: [email protected] or [email protected] .  The submissions will state the name of the student or pupil, the school, the school postal address, email address, telephone or cell-phone number and the county.
4. By participating and submitting the composition, the school will be deemed to have obtained parental or guardianship consent for publication of the composition with the name or image of the pupils or student as the author and the judiciary is fully indemnified I that regards.
5. All the compositions received by the ELRC will be assessed by an independent team of assessors appointed by the Court Users Committee and those found and related as some of the best will be eligible for publication in ELRASE – 3 report. Every school and pupil or student whose composition will be published will receive a Certificate of Recognition as appropriate.  The Pupil, student or school whose composition will be assessed as the best overall will as well be recognized accordingly.

Writing guidelines to students

• Do not type your work.  It should be in your own original handwriting not more than 1500 words
• Write neatly.
• Clearly write the name of your school, class and admission number.
• Write the contacts of your teacher and your guardian.
• Use a foolscap paper and leave the correct margin on the left and right-hand side of the paper.
• Number your pages (at the bottom of the papers).
• Do thorough research and let it be evident in your work.
• You may provide the source of your researched material through proper referencing/bibliography.
• The Essay submission has been extended to or before close of 1^st August, 2025.
• Send a hard copy to:

1. L. Kandet

Registrar

Employment & Labour Relations Court

1. O. Box 30041 – 00100

NAIROBI

Nelson Sifuna

FOR: PRINCIPAL SECRETARY

Copy to:       Regional Directors of Education (TSC)

TSC County Directors

MINISTRY OF EDUCATION

State Department for Technical, Vocational Education and Training

Office of the Principal Secretary

Ref: MOE/TVET/4/14 VOL.II/(26)

ALL Principals,

National Polytechnics
Technical Training Institutes
Technical and Vocational Colleges

RE: MANDATORY REQUIREMENT FOR AUTHENTICATION OF ACADEMIC AND PROFESSIONAL CERTIFICATES IN THE PUBLIC SERVICE

Reference is made to the Public Service Commission circular letters Ref. No. PSC/ADM/13(67) and Ref. No. PSC/ADM/13 dated of 19th October, 2022 respectively.

In the circular letters under reference, the Commission directed all authorized officers and heads of institutions to undertake an audit of academic and professional certificates of appointed officers within a span of ten (10) years denoting that the exercise was limited to officers who entered the public service in the year 2012.

The Commission has noted that a significant number of employees were employed using fraudulent academic and professional certificates emanating from all educational institutions (Secondary schools, TVETs, Private colleges and both local and foreign universities).

The negative impact created to Kenya’s hitherto and venerated academic credentials has now necessitated that ALL Academic and Professional Certificates for ALL officers irrespective of date of employment in the Public Service must be authenticated and a report submitted to the Commission.

In compliance to the Public Service Commission, you are hereby instructed to notify all staff within your respective institutions of this mandatory requirement and to provide necessary administrative support to facilitate the authentication exercise.

Failure to comply with this directive may lead to administrative action as provided under the Public Service Commission Regulations.

Officers/Trainers are required to authenticate their Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE), Kenya Certificate of Primary Education (KCPE) and any diploma or Higher National Diploma certificate acquired from the Kenya National Examination Council by 18th October 2025 through Kenya National Examinations Council portal on https://qmis.knec.ac.ke to access the online platform.

As regards universities and other colleges that offer internal examinations, the Authorised Officer shall submit their certificates to the verifying institutions under Confidential Cover and the verified certificate shall be similarly be submitted to the Authorised Officer under Confidential Cover.

Please note that the Kenya National Examinations Council (KNEC) will continue to extend a discounted rate for validating certificates issued under their jurisdiction.

Please impress upon staff your institution to expedite the process through the Kenya National Examinations Council (KNEC) portal.

Your cooperation and immediate action in implementing this directive is highly appreciated.

Dr. Esther ThaaranMuoria, PhD, CBS
PRINCIPAL SECRETARY

 

Education Ministry circular on ID registration in secondary schools

MINISTRY OF EDUCATION

STATE DEPARTMENT FOR BASIC EDUCATION

Office of the Principal Secretary

Ref: MOE.HQS/3/1/23

Date: May 29, 2025

To: All Regional Directors of Education
All County Directors of Education

RE: FACILITATION OF SCHOOL BASED ID REGISTRATION EXERCISE – SECOND TERM, 2025

The State Department for Immigration and Citizen Services, through the National Registration Bureau (NRB), intends to undertake a mobile National ID registration drive targeting eligible students in secondary schools during the current (second) school term (May – August 2025).

The initiative is designed to ensure that Kenyan students who have attained the age of 18 are registered for National Identity Cards while still in school, enabling them to access tertiary education placements, job opportunities and financial aid such as HELB loans without delay upon completion of secondary education.

You are therefore requested to urgently notify all secondary school principals within your jurisdiction to collaborate with County and Deputy County Registration Officers for the successful implementation of the exercise in their schools.

Please, all inform the principals that for the purposes of this exercise, they or their deputies will serve as identification agents for their students in place of National Government Administration Officers (NGAOs).

Your immediate action in this matter will be appreciated.

Amb. (Prof.) Julius K. Bitok, CBS
PRINCIPAL SECRETARY

Education Ministry circular on ID registration in secondary schools

MINISTRY OF EDUCATION

STATE DEPARTMENT FOR BASIC EDUCATION

Office of the Principal Secretary

Ref: MOE.HQS/3/1/23

Date: May 29, 2025

To: All Regional Directors of Education
All County Directors of Education

RE: FACILITATION OF SCHOOL BASED ID REGISTRATION EXERCISE – SECOND TERM, 2025

The State Department for Immigration and Citizen Services, through the National Registration Bureau (NRB), intends to undertake a mobile National ID registration drive targeting eligible students in secondary schools during the current (second) school term (May – August 2025).

The initiative is designed to ensure that Kenyan students who have attained the age of 18 are registered for National Identity Cards while still in school, enabling them to access tertiary education placements, job opportunities and financial aid such as HELB loans without delay upon completion of secondary education.

You are therefore requested to urgently notify all secondary school principals within your jurisdiction to collaborate with County and Deputy County Registration Officers for the successful implementation of the exercise in their schools.

Please, all inform the principals that for the purposes of this exercise, they or their deputies will serve as identification agents for their students in place of National Government Administration Officers (NGAOs).

Your immediate action in this matter will be appreciated.

Amb. (Prof.) Julius K. Bitok, CBS
PRINCIPAL SECRETARY

MINISTRY OF EDUCATION
State Department for Basic Education

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Nairobi, December 21, 2025

STATUS OF THE ONGOING PLACEMENT OF GRADE NINE LEARNERS IN SENIOR SCHOOLS

The Ministry of Education wishes to state the following regarding the ongoing placement of learners in Senior Schools:

1. The Competency-Based Education (CBE) is founded on the necessity of aligning the education system with National Development goals, global education trends, and the equipping of learners with relevant skills and competencies for a competitive local and international job market. CBE focuses on preparing learners to pursue careers that match their manifest competencies with professional aspirations. It also de-escalates the focus on one-off examinations as a measure of learners’ true competencies.
2. In implementing CBE, the Government has been deliberate in embracing consultations with stakeholders. The dialogues have been extended to the planning and development of essential complements, including an appropriate curriculum, the hiring and retooling of teachers, modernization and expansion of schools’ infrastructure, equipment upgrades, and periodic review of implementation status to align it with emerging challenges and realities.
3. A key feature of CBE is the provision of pathway selection in Grade 9. This allows students to choose educational pathways that correspond with their demonstrated skills, interests, and aspirations. The options are:

• Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM), (
• Social Sciences, and (
• Arts and Sports. Learners are provided with 12 choices to make for their preferred senior schools (Grade 10), ranging from C1 to C4.

The options give learners a platform to select schools that match their competencies, preferences, and institutions’ capacities. This pathway selection exercise was concluded earlier this year with each learner, under the guidance of parents and teachers, selecting a pathway featuring a three-subject-combination.

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Continue Reading:

• Grade 10 Placement: How to change placement school & requirements

• How to change grade 10 Senior School Placement

• How to check grade 10 Senior School placement results

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4. To assess learners’ competencies, CBE relies on formative and summative assessments on a 20-20-60 percent basis. Forty percent of the assessment is formative based on Kenya Primary School Education Assessment (KPSEA) in grade 6, while another 20 percent is based on continuous assessment by teachers in grade 7 and 8. The balance of 60 percent is obtained in the Kenya Junior Secondary Education Assessment (KJSEA) administered in Grade 9. This staggered assessment provides a well-rounded and realistic evaluation of learners’ abilities, suitability, and readiness for a specific pathway.

5. The pioneer Kenya Junior School Education Assessment (KJSEA) for Grade 9 was administered in November this year. The examinations were conducted smoothly across the country, and results were officially released on schedule on December 11th. Throughout the exercise, the Ministry involved stakeholders, including the media, to underscore efficiency and competency.

6. Subsequent to the release of results, the Ministry has undertaken the placement of learners into senior schools (Grade 10). This has been done using an automated system that factors in learners’ choices, performance, and other considerations designed to promote merit, equity, and fairness in the allocation of available school spaces.

7. While many learners have been placed in their schools of choice, the Ministry is aware that some parents and candidates have expressed dissatisfaction with the placements. This is largely attributable to high competition and limited admission slots in popular schools, misaligned communication between parents, learners, and heads of institutions on selected schools, and variances between selected pathways and assessment outcomes.

8. To address such concerns, the Ministry will open a seven-day review of senior school choices on Tuesday, December 23rd. Candidates are advised to contact their Grade 9 schools or the Ministry of Education Sub- County and County offices to take advantage of this window through their respective heads of institutions. The review will be guided by an automated system that will match preferences to learners’ performance and the availability of slots in schools. During the review period, incorrect gender entries will also be addressed.

9. Being a pioneer undertaking, the Government appreciates and empathizes with parents, learners, and other stakeholders’ anxieties and uncertainties around the transition to Grade 10. We are dedicated to making the placement process as transparent, fair, and satisfactory as possible while taking into account learners’
preferences and the capacities and available pathways in respective schools. We encourage all involved parties to engage constructively in the placement process as we collectively refine and strengthen CBE for the benefit of our learners.

Amb. (Prof.) Julius K. Bitok, CBS PRINCIPAL SECRETARY