Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta has announced a new plan to distribute free laptops to first graders across the country. Despite his claims that the move will help bring Kenya into the digital age, many believe that the money could be better spent on feeding students and paying teachers.
The initial phase of President Kenyatta’s plan will see 400,000 laptops distributed to school children in January. Eventually, over 1.3 million laptops will be given away each year.
Cabinet Secretary Henry Rotich said that the program would “reduce the cost of buying and replacing textbooks, and improve access to information, communication and technology in schools.”
Critics of the plan, including many parents, say that the program is a political move, and misses the mark of what is really needed in Kenyan education.
Kenya is currently experiencing a teacher shortage, and over 200,000 public school teachers are on strike over salary issues.
According to Kenya National Association of Parents spokesperson Musau Ndunda, money from the laptop program could be better spent on building classrooms and enrolling more children in the national school-feeding program. He also noted that the laptops could be lost or stolen, as in a recent scandal where 70 million textbooks from a free primary education program disappeared.
Other education groups have stated that Kenyan schools need desks and textbooks more than laptops, and questioned how useful the program will be since many teachers and parents are unfamiliar with computers, and unable to help children learn to use them.
Despite the criticisms, Kenya’s cabinet has approved the plan. A government spokesperson declared that detractors do not “care about the future,” and said that the program would contribute to economic growth and create jobs.
He said that the Ministry of Education would train teachers on how to use the laptops, build computer storage facilities, and provide solar charging stations to enable laptop use in areas with no electricity.
The first stage of the project is expected to cost the government $174 million.
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