national treasury
The Teachers Service Commission has indicated that recent budget modifications suggested by the National Treasury and scheduled to take effect soon will have a negative impact on the Commission’s programs and development projects.
The recruitment of 20,000 teachers and the conversion of 46,000 intern teachers to permanent and pensionable terms, which are scheduled for October 2024 and January next year, respectively, are in peril.
According to the National Treasury’s plan, TSC budget allocations for Fiscal Year 2024/25 will be lowered by Sh18.9 billion following the withdrawal of the 2024 Finance Bill.
TSC stated that the significant budget cuts will have a severe impact on the hiring of junior secondary teachers across the country.
The Commission’s total recurring budget has been decreased by Sh10.28 billion, bringing the new gross recurrent budget to Sh347.49 billion, down from the original allocation of Sh357.77 billion.
It also expects to get Sh404.3 million as the new development budget, down from the original allocation of Sh442.3 million.
The Sh38 million reduction in the development budget is anticipated to hinder the completion of the Commission’s county offices in Machakos and Kilifi counties.
“This reduction will affect the completion of the Commission’s County Offices, specifically in Machakos and Kilifi Counties. The two development projects are at an advanced completion stage and were to be handed over to the Commission in September 2024. The budget cuts will inevitably delay payments to the Contractors upon raising the completion certificate,” TSC stated.
TSC indicated that the reduction of Sh10 billion in staff compensation will postpone the execution of the second phase of the Commission-teacher union CBA agreement for 2021-2025.
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