KICD yet to pay publishers Sh9b over textbook policy gap as Grade 11 rollout nears

It has now emerged that the Kenya Institute of Curriculum Development (KICD) is yet to pay publishers more than Sh9 billion for textbooks supplied to public schools.

The institute is blaming the backlog on the lack of a clear policy governing the procurement and funding of learning materials.

The revelation comes at a critical time as the Ministry of Education prepares for the rollout of Grade 11 next year under the Competency-Based Curriculum (CBC), a transition that will require the printing and nationwide distribution of millions of new textbooks across the three senior school pathways.

Documents submitted by KICD to the National Assembly show that although the institute has no pending bills under its own operations, it owes publishers Sh9.01 billion under the government’s delegated function of procuring and distributing textbooks to public schools.

The outstanding debt was disclosed in KICD’s response to issues raised by the Auditor-General as the National Assembly Departmental Committee on Education examined the implementation of the 2025/26 financial year budget.

Appearing before the committee on Wednesday, KICD Director and Chief Executive Officer Charles Ong’ondo said policy, financial and legislative gaps continue to undermine the institute’s ability to fully execute its mandate.

“There is a need for a policy on disbursement of funds for the procurement of textbooks for public schools,” Prof Ong’ondo told MPs.

He explained that while KICD develops, reviews, evaluates and approves textbooks and curriculum support materials, the procurement and distribution of books to public schools is undertaken under a government arrangement whose financing lacks a clear policy framework.

“We evaluate and approve the textbooks, but distribution is undertaken through the Ministry of Education. We have already developed proposals to address the policy gaps and submitted them to the Ministry for consideration,” he said.

Members of Parliament sought clarification on the textbook procurement process, including which institution controls the funds, how payments are processed and whether KICD had already developed a policy to address the recurring delays in settling publishers’ claims.

The lawmakers also questioned how the government intends to guarantee timely production and delivery of Grade 11 textbooks when publishers are still waiting to be paid billions of shillings for previous supplies.

The disclosure is likely to raise fresh concerns over the financing of CBC implementation as the pioneer cohort prepares to join senior school next year.

The transition will require new textbooks aligned to the Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM), Social Sciences, and Arts and Sports Science pathways.

The pending bills also highlight the financial strain facing publishers, who are expected to print and supply the next batch of learning materials despite carrying unpaid government debt running into billions of shillings.

The institute also cited the continued failure by the government to provide development funding, saying this has delayed completion of the Education Resource Centre, one of its flagship infrastructure projects.

Construction of the Nairobi-based facility began in 2013 at an estimated cost of Sh1.733 billion.

KICD told MPs that Sh1.422 billion has so far been spent on the project, which remains incomplete.

During the 2025/26 financial year, KICD did not receive any development allocation from the Exchequer. Instead, the National Treasury authorised the institute to utilise Sh400 million from its internal savings to continue construction.

Of that amount, only Sh68.53 million had been spent by the close of the financial year, leaving a balance of Sh331.47 million. The institute attributed the low absorption to slow progress by the contractor.

At the same time, KICD defended its financial performance, reporting a 99 per cent budget absorption rate during the 2025/26 financial year.

According to documents tabled before the committee, the institute received a recurrent grant of Sh1.325 billion, matching its approved allocation, while internally generated revenue, recorded as Appropriation in Aid, stood at Sh72.9 million, surpassing the target of Sh70 million.

Overall expenditure amounted to Sh1.37billion against an approved budget of Sh1.39 billion, translating to a budget absorption rate of 99 per cent.

KICD attributed the higher-than-expected internally generated revenue to increased sales of curriculum support materials and income earned from hiring out its conference facilities.

However, despite the strong absorption rate, the institute admitted that delayed disbursement of government grants continues to disrupt its operations.

“The Institute has experienced a delay in disbursement of the grant,” Prof Ong’ondo said.