The Aga Khan Development Network and the Ministry of Education held a workshop today to disseminate the results of the Kenya School Improvement Programme (KENSIP).
KENSIP was launched in 2001 as a trilateral agreement between the Aga Khan Foundation, the Kenyan Ministry of Education and the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) aimed at improving the quality of education in Mombasa and Kwale districts of Coast Province.
KENSIP was implemented by the Aga Khan Education Service, Kenya.
Professor Karega Mutahi, PS, Ministry of Education, speaking at Mwijabu Primary School,Coast Province. Seated on his [right] are Professor George Godia, Education Secretary, Ministry of Education; Mr. Arif Neky, CEO Aga Khan Foundation East Africa; Ms. Noreen Kassam, Board Member Aga Khan Education Service, Kenya; Ms. Belinda Chesire, CIDA Representative Kenya.
The Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Education, Professor Karega Mutahi, was the guest of honour at the event, which showcased the major achievements that KENSIP has brought about for teachers, students, parents and communities.
KENSIP’s beneficiaries spoke passionately about their involvement in the programme and how, as a result, the quality of education in primary schools in Mombasa and Kwale had improved.
The initial results of two evaluations were presented, indicating that KENSIP had positively impacted student enrolment, retention and performance in primary school.
“KENSIP has been a particularly strong example of a partnership between a private agency, the government, and a bilateral donor to respond to priorities laid out in the Kenya Education Sector Support Programme,” said Mr Arif Neky, Regional Chief Executive Officer of the Aga Khan Foundation in East Africa.
“It has shown how successful education programmes can be catalysts for change, especially in the face of major new challenges, such as those brought about by the introduction of free primary education in 2003.
“KENSIP has designed, piloted, refined and rolled-out many successful interventions to improve education in Coast Province, including the cluster system, the peer mentoring approach, and new ways to create access and retention for girls.”
In his remarks, Professor Mutahi indicated that KENSIP’s success has created a high demand from other districts and regions in Kenya for a similar intervention.
He called upon AKDN, CIDA and his Ministry to work together to develop a continuation of the current partnership which will deepen and broaden KENSIP’s achievements.
Ismailimail 
