Teachers across Kenya are set to receive a salary increase from next month after the Teachers Service Commission confirmed the government has released funds to enhance their pay, bringing some relief to a profession that has long pressed for better remuneration.
TSC Chairperson Jamleck Muturi made the announcement on Friday, June 26, during the closing ceremony of the 49th KESSHA Annual National Conference of Principals in Mombasa, telling school heads the new salaries would take effect on July 1.
“We signed a Collective Bargaining Agreement with the unions, which has several implementation phases. We have been allocated Ksh8.4 billion for increasing teachers’ salaries from July this year. That money has been allocated, and we will ensure that it is paid,” Muturi said.
Beyond the pay rise, Muturi announced that the commission will advertise promotion vacancies for more than 30,000 teachers in August, backed by Ksh2 billion from the National Treasury. The promotions will span job groups C2 through D5, with selection based on merit, performance, and years of service. Teachers who have stagnated in the same job group for extended periods will also be considered.
“That’s not a mean achievement, and it is out of the government’s desire to motivate our teachers that the promotions have been very forthcoming,” Muturi said.
In a further boost, the government has allocated Ksh4.9 billion in the 2026/27 financial year to convert 24,000 Junior Secondary School intern teachers to permanent and pensionable terms — directly addressing one of the central demands from teachers who held nationwide demonstrations in recent months.
The announcements follow a Memorandum of Understanding signed between the TSC and the Kenya Union of Post-Primary Education Teachers (KUPPET) on June 18 or 19, anchored on their Collective Bargaining Agreement of July last year. Under the new arrangement, teachers seeking promotions will now move through six streamlined levels, down from a longer, more cumbersome process that critics said caused unnecessary delays.
Also speaking at the conference, Education Cabinet Secretary Julius Ogamba directed the Kenya Institute of Curriculum Development to immediately publish and distribute Braille books and other accessible learning materials for learners with disabilities, signalling a broader push towards inclusive education.
Muturi noted that the education sector had received approximately Ksh454 billion in budgetary allocation, with over 98 per cent directed at salaries. He acknowledged the scale of the investment, saying it exceeded expectations despite ongoing challenges in the sector.
