ABDULLAHI MAALIM
Africa-Press – Kenya. Education remains the most enduring pathway for societies to secure dignity, opportunity, and long-term stability.
In Northeastern Kenya, this reality carries even greater significance. The region’s educational journey has been shaped by historical inequities, geographic challenges, mobility patterns, and socio-economic realities that continue to influence access, participation, and learning outcomes. Yet, alongside these challenges, there is a growing recognition that meaningful progress is possible when the region speaks with clarity, honesty, and shared purpose.
Last week gathering of education stakeholders from across the region in Nairobi reflected this emerging consensus. The discussions were characterized not by rhetoric, but by a candid acknowledgment of the issues confronting schools and learners today.
Conversations centered on preparedness for the Competency-Based Education transition, enrolment and retention trends, pressures on infrastructure, human resource gaps, and concerns surrounding the integrity of national examinations.
Participants approached these matters with a clear understanding that the challenges are interconnected and require responses that extend beyond isolated or short-term interventions.
Participants of the education stakeholders meeting in Nairobi/HANDOUT
A strong consensus emerged around the need to create structured space for regional reflection and collective thinking.
Education challenges in Northeastern Kenya cannot be fully addressed through fragmented initiatives; they require alignment of perspectives, shared ownership of solutions, and sustained engagement among all actors within the education ecosystem.
There was a shared appreciation that solutions must be grounded in the lived realities of the region while remaining firmly aligned with national policy direction.
Within this context, the proposal to convene a regional education symposium gained broad support. The intention is not to create another forum for discussion, but to provide a platform through which the region can consolidate its views on the challenges affecting education and agree on practical measures to mitigate them.
Such a platform offers an opportunity to move from diagnosis to consensus, and from consensus to coordinated action, ensuring that regional experiences meaningfully inform ongoing education reforms.
Central to this thinking is the recognition that any progress must remain anchored in the technical leadership of the Ministry of Education. Sustainable improvement in education outcomes depends on strong alignment with national frameworks, professional guidance, and institutional coherence.
The regional initiative, therefore, seeks to complement existing efforts by strengthening dialogue between policy and practice, and by ensuring that implementation challenges encountered at the local level are constructively addressed.
The conversations also reflected concern about emerging trends that risk undermining gains already made, particularly where integrity within the education system is compromised. There was broad agreement that safeguarding standards, promoting merit, and restoring confidence in educational outcomes require collective responsibility that extends beyond schools to families, communities, and leadership structures.
The spirit that defined the meeting was one of responsibility rather than blame. There was clear agreement that the region must take ownership of its education agenda, mobilise its leadership and institutions, and work collaboratively with national and development partners to address persistent barriers. The proposed symposium is envisioned as a unifying moment—an opportunity to listen, align priorities, and forge a practical pathway forward.
The call that now emerges is simple but urgent. All stakeholders involved in education—government institutions, education professionals, community leaders, civil society organizations, and development partners—are encouraged to join and support this process. Success will depend not on individual effort, but on collective commitment under a shared vision.
Northeastern Kenya stands at an important juncture. With honest reflection, coordinated action, and sustained partnership, the region can transform present challenges into opportunities to strengthen education systems for future generations. The responsibility is shared, and the opportunity must not be missed.
The writer is a governance and policy expert with 25+ years of experience in public administration, devolution, and institutional reform. He has held senior roles including Education & Governance Sector Lead at the Frontier Counties Development Council, Wajır County Secretary, and Chief Officer in Health, Roads, Devolution, and Education.
Source: The Star
