Post: Dr. Pamela Odhiambo Urges Careful Deliberation on Devolving Education Sector

Migori: Former Migori County Woman Representative, Dr. Pamela Odhiambo, has urged the national government and education stakeholders to critically weigh the merits and demerits of assigning county governments the responsibility of overseeing the education sector before fully devolving it. Speaking during an education stakeholders' forum at Migori Teachers Training College (MTTC), Dr. Odhiambo emphasised that education should be treated as a special case, cautioning against hasty decisions that could undermine the sector.According to Kenya News Agency, in the just concluded 13th National Devolution Conference in Homa Bay County, the Former Prime Minister Raila Odinga had claimed that the time has come to transfer the management of primary and secondary schools from the national government to county governments. With reference to the health sector, which is already fully devolved, she challenged governors to first address existing inefficiencies in healthcare delivery before 'scrambling' to control education, which is still stabilizing under the new curriculum.Dr. Odhiambo has, instead, called on county governments to collaborate with education authorities in resolving emerging challenges and ensuring that learners are adequately supported. The Kenya National Union of Teachers (KNUT) and the Kenya Union of Post-Primary Education Teachers (KUPPET) have already opposed Odinga's proposal to devolve education to counties.The Union chaired by KNUT Secretary General Collins Oyuu and KUPPET Secretary General Akelo Misori cited the struggling Early Childhood Development sector as a perfect example of County Governments failures to streamline the education at the lowest level. They have called upon the national government to focus more on streamlining the sector, particularly by addressing the issues raised by teachers, or risk compromising the smooth rollout of the Competency-Based Education (CBE).