Kitale: Trans Nzoia Governor George Natembeya has hailed the increased enrollment for technical courses in the region, attributing it to the government’s efforts to revolutionize the sector. Speaking in Kitale, Natembeya singled out the county government’s improved capitation, which saw an increase from Sh 2,000 to Sh 13,000 this Financial Year as a major contributing factor to the increased enrollment.
According to Kenya News Agency, Natembeya termed the increased capitation as a game changer in technical and vocational training. He highlighted it as one of many steps the county government has undertaken to fulfill the commitment of revamping the sector to equip local youth with skills necessary for nation building. ‘When we took over from the previous government, technical and vocational training was underfunded, understaffed, and underutilized. Today, the narrative has shifted dramatically with many learners registering for technical courses,’ he said.
Governor Natembeya further revealed the commencement of a five-year partnership with a Dutch Organization, Tools to Work, which has delivered equipment worth Sh15 million to support hands-on learning under the Competency-Based Education and Training (CBET) programme. As he called for more collaborative arrangements, the Governor hailed Tools to Work for their support, which has helped address the training needs of most learners.
To address the shortage of instructors, Natembeya announced that the county government has set in motion plans to recruit 64 new instructors in the 2025-2026 Financial Year. In regard to Early Childhood Development Education (ECDE), Natembeya revealed the county has embarked on an ambitious programme of constructing 122 classrooms, 61 offices, and 28 ablution blocks across the county to reduce the distance covered by school-going children.
The Governor also praised the ‘Mkombozi Milk Program,’ introduced in about 434 ECDE centres in Trans Nzoia, where learners are provided with milk twice per week, noting that the programme had significantly improved both class attendance and learner vitality. ‘These investments reflect our unwavering commitment to the future of this County, which begins in the classroom with our young children to our skilled trainees,’ he stated, adding that the county government envisions not only building schools but also building futures.