Many know her as Kipipiri Member of Parliament (MP), serving after her previous representation at East Africa Legislative Assembly (EALA).
Wanjiku is one leader who takes her legislative and representation duties diligently, with zeal and courage.
She has been a champion of the Voiceless especially the differently abled who include persons living with disabilities, including intellectual disabilities.
Wanjiku is the architect of different pieces of legislation centrally designed to dignify the PwDs. For instance, she is celebrated for midwiving the implementation of the law for persons with disabilities. The law stipulates that all TV stations must provide a sign language interpreter for the news and other necessary programmes geared towards including the persons with hearing impairment.
She is also piecing together another law that of passed by Parliament will reinforce the dignity of persons with disabilities.
“This will spur their inclusion in various aspects. For example when they are going out to look for employment, their cover letter should act as a document to propel them towards such opportunities. The law seeks to omit degrading words like “mentally disabled” from identification documents of PwDs because such might trigger contempt.”
Hon Wanjiku on Monday Joined students at Kenya Community Centre for Learning (KCCL) in creating awareness and the need for inclusivity.
She also congratulated a team that represented Kenya at the Berlin special Olympics and said that she is very committed to bring the plight of the institutionz that handle children with disabilities.
“The few facilities that exist are either underfunded or reliant on well-wishers or donors. Like this Kenya community Centre for learning is parent owned and lacks government funding to be able to run day to day activities. If anchored in law, these institutions will be fully capacitated in a bid to enhance them with facilitation to better handle pwds,”
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Wanjiku Muhia: The True Leader Who is The Voice of the Voiceless
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President Ruto unveils the GavaMkononi app during Digital forum
President Ruto on Friday 30th, July unveiled the Gavamkononi app, Gava Express, and other digitized government services.
State house spokesperson Hussein Mohammed stated,” On JAMHURI Day last year, President William Ruto made a promise that 5000 government services would be digitized and made accessible on the E-Citizen platform, to enhance service delivery, increase revenue collection, promote transparency and eliminate corruption.”
“Today, that pledge has become a reality as the President unveils the digitized e-Citizen services, the GavaMkononi App, and Gava Express,” he added.
The head of state said that The Gavamkononi app is an application that will help all citizens access government services from the comfort of their phones.
The statement read, “To make access to these services easier and in consideration of the fact that majority of users are likely to access them on smartphones, a phone-based app, GavaMkononi, has been successfully developed.”
The Gava Express app is an application modeled to function as the physical Huduma centers in different parts of the country.
The statement read, “Unlike Huduma Centers that are primarily based in county headquarters, Gava Express will provide services at the grassroots. Gava Express will be driven in partnership with the private sector and targets the establishment of over 300,000 outlets.”
Notably, The e- citizen services include; NTSA (Provisional Driving License), Business Registration Services, Police Clearance / Certificate of Good Conduct, Civil Registration Services (Marriage), Foreign Nationals Initial Registration, Directorate of Immigration Services, Kenya Ports Authority, Kenya Revenue Authority, HELB, and MSMEs (Hustler Fund).
Over 5,000 citizen online services GAVA Mkononi App for ease of access of services Gava Express (the e-Citizen Agency channel to reach all corners of the country and citizens to access services). It will take the model of Mpesa agents all over the country; USSD Short Code *2222 at the final stages of being configured for citizens to register onto the e-Citizen platform.
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TransCentury strikes back at Equity in receivership battle
Investment firm, TransCentury Limited (TCL), has accused Equity Bank of employing predatory tactics to place it under receivership over a Sh4.8 billion debt.
TransCentury, in a suit before the High Court in Nairobi, has accused the bank of swooping on the investment firm while being privy to advanced negotiations on means and ways of settling the debt.
TCL says it was taken by surprise by Equity Bank’s decision to appoint Receiver Managers even as the parties looked forward to concluding the settlement agreement.
Secondary to the dispute is TCL’s decision to keep the Sh800 million raised from a recently concluded rights issue with Cooperative Bank.
Equity Bank insists that the decision to keep the money at Coop Bank and not with them, is a clear sign that owners of TransCentury are quietly divesting the funds using a different account.
“I verily believe that directors of TransCentury have started divesting the funds received from the recently concluded rights issue by picking Coop Bank as the receiving account to the detriment of Equity Bank and other creditors,” Equity Bank Legal Manager Kariuki King’ori said in court papers.
But the investment firm argues it had on June 9, 2023, informed Equity that it was awaiting approval from Fair Competition Commission (FCC) of Tanzania before accessing the funds raised from the rights issue and it planned to use part of the money to repay the debt.
TransCentury insists Equity was aware it received FCC approval on June 14, 2023, making the the Sh828 million Rights Issue funds available for use in settling the debt but the bank still appointed the receivers.
TransCentury raised over Sh830 million in the right issue and deposited the money at Co-operative Bank.
On June 19, 2023, Equity Bank announced that it had appointed Muriu Thoiti and George Weru from PriceWaterhouseCoopers (PWC) as joint administrators of both TransCentury and its subsidiary, East African Cables, in a move aimed at helping recover the debt.
Two days later, TransCentury moved to court under a certificate of urgency and obtained the order suspending a decision by the bank to appoint two receiver managers to take over the company until the dispute is heard and determined.
The investment firm has listed Equity Bank Kenya Limited, George Weru and Muniu Thoiti as respondents.
Trans Century through its lawyer, Philip Nyachoti told the court that the forceful takeover bid had prejudiced and destabilised the company’s operations even after discussing and agreeing with the bank on a road map for repayment of the loan.
“TCL informed the bank that it is in the final stages of finalising rights issues to the tune of Sh2 billion for purposes of injecting capital into the business and have enough money to offset the outstanding loan balance but they declined,” said Nyachoti.
“That as such, parties have been in extensive negotiations with a view of reconciling Equity’s account and determining the actual outstanding amount with the last correspondence being on June 12, 2023 with the bank requesting for more information about our holding company hence the appointment is premature and in bad faith,” TransCentury says in court papers.
East Africa Cables obtained a Sh1.7 billion loan from Equity between January 21, 2021 and March 10, 2021 and has since paid Sh617,076,299.
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New Channels, New power: Are you up to speed with customer communications?
By Tushar Vashnavi, Director of Strategic Planning, Canon EMEA
Not all the changes of the past two years are here to stay. But one area that has transformed is customer communications.
Every output from every customer communications management system is a customer experience, and each of those experiences is part of a customer journey – and that journey has changed. A digital-first, personalised approach is expected, and the ‘new’ ways of working are no longer new. Consumers have more power than ever, and businesses will need to accept and embrace this to attract and, more importantly, retain them.
Not only that, much of the digital transformation that took place at the beginning of the pandemic were short-term measures. In a world of unpredictability, businesses now need to look at removing these sticking plasters and replacing them with future-proofed solutions.
Digital first, not digital only
The circumstances surrounding the pandemic prompted a digitisation of business processes, including customer communications. Indeed, digital transformation was accelerated by several years. Customers accepted a digital-first approach and now expect it, along with a high level of personalisation; both consumers and B2B buyers have an expectation that businesses know their specific needs.
Essential to personalisation is channel preference. There was a massive shift of communications spend to digital in the two years pre-pandemic, but that potentially overlooks the power of print. Studies have found that print is the most highly trusted medium available to marketers today, while website advertising, particularly through social channels, is the least trusted.
When planning their customer communications strategy, businesses should also bear in mind generational differences. Younger generations typically prefer digital-first methods such as text and live chat to phone and have embraced self-service and chatbots. The pandemic has pushed older generations towards digital too, but organisations should be supportive and understanding of these new adopters as well as those who remain offline. In England, for example, this is nearly half of those aged over 75 – a significant proportion of a potential customer base who risk being lost via a digital-only strategy.
It’s not just missing the mark in terms of channel that could lose an organisation customer. Research by Quadient, a specialist in customer experience management software, found that 70 per cent of UK consumers would blacklist a company for failures in their customer communication, ranging from basic personal information errors, to using the pandemic as an excuse for delivering poor customer service, to sending spam. One-third said they have stayed with businesses which offered poor customer service during the pandemic but will be moving to competitors when things return to normal.
Futureproofing for success
So, the customer communications landscape has changed, consumers have newfound power and organisations need to get up to speed quickly. But how do they adapt and achieve cut-through?
The key is a strategic, holistic approach that spans every line of business, ensuring each element is customer centric. Budgetary silos can mean organisations are not aligned across departments, resulting in a failure to meet expectations. For instance, if a customer calls the billing department to report a change of address, they will assume that change would be made across marketing and sales too. If it isn’t, they could be switching to a competitor. Customer communications solutions that do not replicate changes throughout the data flow, or do not automate such tasks, have the potential to create more problems than they solve.
Many organisations who made knee-jerk purchases prompted by the pandemic are now finding they are not fit for purpose long-term. Businesses may need to reconfigure or entirely replace them – otherwise they are simply a stopgap solution that could ultimately fail.
To be fully future-proofed, look also to the cloud. Traditionally customer communications solutions have been on-premises, but businesses should invest in a solution that is both on-site and accessible via the cloud with the ability to switch from one to the other – an approach that meets the needs of a hybrid workforce.
Hybrid working is now the norm across many parts of the globe. It’s clear that for staff to complete customer communications work efficiently and effectively they need seamless access wherever they are located. As well as affecting customer relations, mistakes here could risk losing employees. ‘The Great Resignation’ reflects a greater ability for people to leave jobs which don’t meet their personal needs, or where they encounter obstacles to their productivity in their chosen location.
The uncertain future
Customer communications solutions typically have a lifespan of ten, and in some cases, up to 20 years. That’s a weighty consideration for anyone charged with the responsibility of making such investments. And, if the pandemic has shown us anything, it’s that nothing is certain.
However, we can make some forecasts. Quadient predicts customer services will continue to fragment and multiply in volume and reiterates that meeting fast-evolving customer expectations isn’t possible unless organisations are joined up internally from a process and technology perspective. Lines of business need to work together and consolidate data from different stages of the customer journey, making every aspect customer centric.
With that in mind, organisations should look at the changes that need to be made now. How can accurate personalisation be assured? How can departments work more efficiently together? What are the issues in the current workflow? Answer those questions today to invest in a successful tomorrow.
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Xiaomi Kenya Celebrates the WRC Safari Rally with Fans
Xiaomi Kenya is celebrating its Safari Rally campaign winners by showcasing their content from this weekend’s World Rally Championship (WRC) Safari Rally competition in Naivasha; one of the motorsport’s most iconic and challenging events in the circuit. Xiaomi Kenya took three lucky winners to this year’s rally weekend in Naivasha to experience the adventure and spirit of the sport; inspiring them to live vivid.
The campaign kicked off at the beginning of the month where customers who purchased any Xiaomi device at the MI retail stores was encouraged to share pictures of their purchase to win exciting prizes such as a Redmi A2+, Redmi Note 12 or a ticket to the rally weekend courtesy of Xiaomi. Building on to the campaign with the rally hype, Xiaomi encouraged fans to share creative photos representing the rally theme. Participants were encouraged to showcase unique angles, speed and other rally-related elements. The top two winners were awarded rally tickets, giving them an opportunity to experience the Safari Rally.
The three winners got a chance to experience the thrill of the rally firsthand – the iconic terrain, picturesque sceneries and the adrenaline fueled race as the drivers maneuvered the rocky & rutted tracks adding to the adventure for spectators. At the rally, the winners captured their experience using their Redmi Note 12 Pro’s 200MP cameras. This camera redefines photography allowing users to capture every tiny detail with high resolution. The device not only boasts of amazing camera hardware, but also cutting-edge software such as Xiaomi AI Image Solution that allows for enhanced image quality with computational photography and Xiaomi ProCut, which allows for effortless photo composition with AI assistance, offering users more options for editing and post production.
With the Redmi Note 12 Pro amazing charging speed, 120W HyperCharge that guarantees zero to full charge in less in 20 minutes and its 5,000mAh long-lasting battery built for extended usage even under heavy content consumption – ensured that the Xiaomi Fans never missed a moment at the Rally. Xiaomi is now celebrating the fans by showcasing their unforgettable rally experience on social media.
The spirit of the Redmi Note 12 Series is to inspire people to Live Vivid. With its incredible camera, users can vividly immortalize every moment, its smooth and vivid display creates an amazing user experience and its large battery and fast charging ensures Xiaomi fans are always connected.
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Medic East Africa And Medlab East Africa To Host The Region’s Largest Medical Exhibition This September In Nairobi
The organisers of leading healthcare exhibitions like Arab Health, FIME, Africa Health, Medlab Middle East- Informa Markets have announced the commencement of Medic East Africa and Medlab East Africa, taking place at KICC in Nairobi, Kenya, from 11-13 September 2023.
With the theme of “Redefining healthcare delivery in East Africa”, the event will be Held under the patronage of the Ministry of Health Kenya and will strive to bring together the international and regional healthcare communities to improve healthcare delivery for the people and transform the future of healthcare in East Africa.
The event aims to attract over 5,000 healthcare and laboratory professional visits from around the world, making it the biggest healthcare exhibition in the East African region. The event will also showcase over 150 leading global brands from over 20 countries like Abbott, Snibe Diagnostics, Crown Healthcare, and more. Confirmed countries participating at the event include France, Greece, Italy, Romania, Cyprus, Switzerland, Türkiye, Kenya, China, India, United Arab Emirates and United States.
The event will also include participation of key regional healthcare organisations including the Kenyan Healthcare Federation, the Association of Clinical Pathologists, the Surgical Society, the Medical Association and the National Public Health Institute.
In parallel to the exhibition, the free-to-attend congress will feature the Healthcare Summit 2.0 conference and the Laboratory educational sessions conference tracks will also take place throughout the 3-day event to offer a collaborative environment for healthcare and laboratory professionals, policymakers, researchers, and technology experts to discuss challenges and opportunities in achieving better health systems. The diverse line-up of regional and international experts will share cutting-edge insights and best practices on Healthcare Excellence, Public Health, and Equity to address public and private healthcare challenges in the region.
Some of the featured speakers at the event include Adama Thiam, Head of Emergency Operations Support and Logistics – WHO, Dr Muthoni Karanja, HIV Prevention Specialist – Department of Defence Kenya, Gerald Macharia, Chairman – KNPHI and Aaron K Mulaki Head of Strategic Partnerships and Engagement, African Constituency Bureau for the Global Fund.
Commenting on the announcement, Medic East Africa and Medlab East Africa Exhibition Director Tom Coleman said, “With the growth of the healthcare and laboratory industries in East Africa, Medic East Africa and Medlab East Africa, will showcase the latest innovations and technologies driving the industry forward in the region, as well as provide the ultimate platform for meeting colleagues and discussing the latest trends impacting their respective industries.”
The convention will be a trading and business-sharing platform for industry professionals to promote interaction and trade amongst C-level management from hospitals, leading manufacturers, key government professionals, investors, dealers, and distributors. Visitors will be able to source from 9 dedicated product sectors, including medical equipment and devices, imaging and diagnostics, disposables and consumer goods, healthcare and general services, medical laboratory, and wellness and prevention.
Medic East Africa and Medlab East Africa 2023 is free to attend for healthcare and laboratory professionals and investors across the East African region with a keen interest in healthcare delivery.
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KCB Bank unveils plan to support schools’ transition to clean energy solutions
KCB through its social investment arm, KCB Foundation has today announced an ambitious programme that will see it extend financial support to learning institutions to transition to clean energy cooking solutions.
Under this arrangement, KCB Foundation will provide a partial grant of between 10% to 30% of the cost of buying and installing Liquified Petroleum Gas (LPG) equipment for qualified learning institutions. The rest of the funding will be provided through pre-arranged financing solutions and will be available to all secondary schools, both public and private learning institutions countrywide.
The move is in response to the revelation that a large portion of fuel demand comes from Kenyan schools where about 90 percent of public schools use firewood for cooking and pay up to $20,000 per year for the wood, which makes cooking fuel one of the biggest expenses in schools’ meal budgets.
Making the announcement, the Head of KCB Foundation, Caroline Wanjeri noted that the roll-out of the clean cooking programme is a testament to the bank’s collective efforts to support Africa’s drive to achieve SDG 7 with particular emphasis on universal access to modern energy services for all. Additionally, it will enable it to scale up its efforts to support the adoption of clean and modern cooking solutions which uses less fuel, limit smoke emissions, and reduces the amount of greenhouse gases emitted to the environment.
“Schools have been identified as large contributors to inefficient cooking as they prepare high volumes of meals by consuming over 685,000 tons of firewood and charcoal per year. This has drastic consequences on the environment, economic development, and public health in a world where close to 2.6 billion people still lack access to clean cooking solutions. We are therefore keen to position schools as the cornerstone of Kenya’s sustainable future powered by affordable, reliable, clean, and modern energy distributed to all,” Wanjeri said.
To date, the bank has disbursed loans worth KShs. 60 million to 30 schools across the country with KCB Foundation giving KShs. 30 million in the form of grants during the pilot phase.
“KCB has been at the forefront of mobilizing the financial sector’s climate action and supporting carbon-positive projects in society. By supporting the transition to cleaner fuels like LPG, we shall be enabling learning institutions to realize up to 40% savings in their cooking budget with better health and environmental outcomes, improved kitchen hygiene, and motivation of workers. It will also be an opportunity to build on our existing efforts to widen the range and reach of activities in support of a just energy transition that is partly spearheaded by our own greening programme dubbed “Linda Miti” which has seen us plant over 160,000 trees in 943 schools this year,” Wanjeri added.
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Joel Gitali Thoughts on Drug Abuse
Joel Shunza Gitali is the Chairman of Kenya Tobacco Control and Health Promotion Alliance. He takes a moment to share with us his thoughts on drugs abuse.
“Tobacco and Miraa are the major gateways to tobacco abuse in Kenya. The introduction of Shisha, oral nicotine pouches, e-cigarettes and other novel products has worsened the situation, globally, and specifically in Kenya.
The government of Kenya has been reluctant in implementing and enforcing tobacco control policies, including the WHO- Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, and the Protocol on Elimination of Illicit Tobacco Trade across the border.
Oral nicotine pouches are now all over the country, unregulated. They are flavoured to attract the youth and children. The government is sort of in slumberland as children of Kenya sink into addiction.
Leaders have continued to feign ignorance for political expedience as miraa continues to destroy thousands of lives.
Together with alcohol, these seemingly legal substances open doors to thousands, if not millions of our youth into the world of drug abuse.
Our porous borders, corruption, impunity and laxity of those in authority are to blame. Some of these goods enter thru our ports and other legal routes manned by our own officers. We need action.
It’s disheartening to learn that addictive and harmful products such as tobacco/ oral nicotine pouches and alcohol have not been touched in this year’s budget. This is insensitivity on the part of the government. There should be a proper plan of implementing / enforcing our policies and being alert to avert pandemics.
We can’t be talking of problems of mental health and a host of NCDs that can be prevented as we promote behaviour that leads to the same. If we do not deal with tobacco, miraa, oral nicotine pouches, e-cigarettes, alcohol and cannabis, our fight against drug abuse and illegal trafficking will remain rhetorical. Speeches by those Co NJ concerned will not cure the problem. Action will.”
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Directline Assurance on the verge of Collapse amid overwhelming Claims Outstanding
Directline Assurance, once a prominent name in the insurance industry finds itself caught in a whirlwind of outstanding liability claims pushing the company to the edge of collapse.
Claims reports released by the regulator, Insurance Regulatory Authority (IRA) indicate that Directline recorded the highest number of outstanding liability claims throughout 2022.
The company recorded 22,074 , 21,295 , 20,402 and 19,116 liability claims outstanding in the 4th ,3rd 2nd and 1st Quarters respectively; This means that the company consistently recorded a significant increase in liability claims throughout the year leaving the company grappling with the formidable task of managing a deluge of claims that threaten its financial stability.
Many, especially the policyholders have been left postulating that the company is chocking with liability claims and is on its death bed.
“These high numbers of outstanding liability claims at Directline is ironical since Directline is the most expensive especially in PSV premium charged and excess fees when reporting claims. Besides, the company has been straining, struggling and delaying to pay claims” ,stated an aggrieved client.
Customers who once relied on the insurer for their coverage are now leaving in their numbers after being faced by the reality of the company’s inability to honor claims and provide the financial security promised. With mounting frustrations, policyholders are increasingly turning to alternative insurance providers, eroding Directline’s customer base and exacerbating the financial strain.
A collapse of the company would not only leave policyholders in a state of vulnerability but would also have far-reaching implications for the wider insurance industry.
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APBET Schools Solidify Their Push For Inclusion
The implementation of the Free Primary Education (FPE) program in 2003 and Free Day Secondary Education (FDSE) in 2008 has led to a significant increase in the number of children attending school in Kenya. The student population grew from 6.7 million in 2003 to over 12 million in 2015. However, despite this progress, there were still approximately 1.9 million primary school children aged 6-13 years and 2.7 million children aged 14-17 years who were out of school, as reported by the Kenya Household Population Census (KHPC) in 2009.
Furthermore, the 2007 Kenya National Adult Literacy survey revealed that 7.8 million Kenyans were illiterate, with individuals aged 15-30 years accounting for 35% of the illiterate population. This issue is particularly pronounced in informal urban settlements, arid and semi-arid lands, and impoverished areas throughout the country. In response to the educational needs of those unable to join formal institutions, Alternative Provision of Basic Education and Training (APBET) institutions have emerged as viable alternatives.
While the government acknowledges the crucial role of APBET in improving access to basic education, especially in marginalized areas and informal settlements, these institutions have not been officially recognized by the Ministry of Education, Science, and Technology (MoE) due to their failure to meet the registration requirements imposed on conventional schools, such as acreage, staffing, and facilities. Consequently, over half a million children, youth, and adults are receiving education in institutions operating informally. Sir Moses Wokono, the National Chairman of the Unified Apbet Schools Association (UASA), emphasized this point during the launch of UASA-SCCO.
According to the Kenyan Constitution (2010), Article 43 guarantees the right to education for every individual, while Article 53(b) specifically states that every child has the right to free and compulsory basic education. The Basic Education Act of 2013, Section 39(c), enacts this provision and mandates the Cabinet Secretary to ensure that children from marginalized, vulnerable, or disadvantaged groups are not discriminated against or hindered from pursuing and completing their basic education. Section 95(3) (i) and (j) of the Act also empowers the Cabinet Secretary to establish regulations pertaining to the conduct and management of schools, classification criteria for schools, provisions for different types of schools, as well as imposing conditions and granting exemptions.
Sir Moses urged the Ministry of Education to incorporate APBET Schools as a third category of schools in the Education Act. This legal recognition would enable APBET Schools to operate lawfully, and their registration guidelines should be made feasible and practical.
A meeting was held at The Excellence, an exemplary APBET School located in Gatina, Dagoretti. Attendees included Hon. Anthony Oluoch, Member of Parliament for Mathare; Madam Salome Wenyaa, Nairobi Region RDQAS; Mr. Raphael Musy, SCDE Dagoretti; Mr. Johnson Akongo, Nairobi County Licensing Officer; Mr. Johson Shisanya from Each Rights, Beacon of Hope, and EduAID; as well as representatives from UASA-K NEC officials.
Hon. Oluoch pledged to advocate for the inclusion of APBET Schools in the Education Act and urged the Nairobi Government to consider APBET learners for the porridge and feeding program.
Mr. Akongo, the Nairobi County Licensing Officer, confirmed the Governor’s commitment to reduce the business licenses for APBET schools from Kshs. 10,000 to Kshs. 3,000. He assured that this reduction has already been considered and is included in the current finance bill.
Madam Salome Wenyaa, the Nairobi Region RQASO, emphasized the importance of quality teaching in all APBET Schools. She advised the directors of APBET Schools to ensure their learners’ active participation in extracurricular activities and reminded them of the ongoing music festival.
Sir Christopher Barassa, representing the Unified Apbet Schools Association of Kenya, expressed gratitude for the partners’ dedication to the recognition of APBET Schools.
Dr. Paul K. Wanjohi, the Association Treasurer, advised APBET Schools to seize the opportunity presented by the SACCO launch and begin saving immediately.
There is a pressing need to officially recognize APBET Schools in order to bridge the educational gap for marginalized communities in Kenya. Legal recognition will ensure that these institutions can operate within the framework of the Education Act, allowing them to provide education to a significant number of children, youth, and adults who are currently being educated in informal settings.