President William Ruto has criticised former Cabinet Secretary Fred Matiang’i over his recent remarks on the state of the education system.
Speaking on Monday in Kisumu, the President said his administration found major weaknesses in the education sector when it took office but has since taken steps to stabilise and improve the system.
He said the government is addressing funding gaps, teacher shortages, and financial strain in higher education institutions.
Ruto said some former leaders are attempting to lecture the government on education reforms despite being responsible for the challenges now being fixed.
He pointed to issues such as inadequate school capitation, lack of enough teachers, and universities facing financial distress.
“I have seen some leaders trying to lecture us about the education system. We want to tell them we are fixing your mess. You messed the education system.
There were no teachers in class, there was inadequate capitation, there was not enough money for universities and TVETs, and 21 universities were facing closure because of insolvency,” Ruto said.
The President stated that the government has increased capitation funds for schools and improved the timing of disbursements so that institutions receive money earlier.
He added that the administration has hired 100,000 teachers to reduce staffing gaps and improve learning conditions.
“Today we have more money going to capitation. This month, money for capitation was in schools even before learners reported.
We have hired 100,000 teachers to fix the shortage that was left behind, and we have added more money for universities and TVETs to address insolvency,” he said.
Ruto’s remarks come days after Matiang’i defended himself against claims that he was responsible for problems surrounding the Competency Based Curriculum (CBC).
In a recent statement, Matiang’i rejected accusations that CBC created the current difficulties in the education sector.
He instead blamed poor leadership and mismanagement under the present administration, arguing that the curriculum is being unfairly targeted.
Matiang’i said the main problem lies in weak implementation and administrative failures rather than the design of CBC itself.
He also cited the handling of the 100 per cent transition policy as an example of what he described as systemic breakdown. According to him, reforms achieved through earlier planning have been undermined by poor execution.
Matiang’i maintained that similar challenges would have emerged under any curriculum model if management remained ineffective.
He said the curriculum is sound but requires proper coordination and leadership to deliver results, adding that reforms can still be corrected with the right approach.
