Principal Secretary Julius Bitok has called on schools to consider delaying mock examinations to reduce tension and prevent further student unrest across the country.
Speaking at an education stakeholders meeting on June 6, Bitok said boards of management should postpone the tests if students are not ready. He stated that examinations and shifting schedules are key triggers of unrest. Bitok urged open dialogue with students instead of forcing assessments. He noted that exam tensions contributed to the recent incident at Utumishi Girls where 16 students died. Data shows about 80 secondary schools have faced unrest in the past three weeks. The government has deployed 1,000 quality assurance officers and ordered a 10-day national audit of boarding schools. Bitok added that 99.2 percent of schools remain safe and school dates will not change due to the issues affecting fewer than 80 out of 52,000 institutions.