The Ministry of Education has ordered the immediate inspection of all schools aimed at ensuring the safety of learners.

In a statement on Wednesday, September 11, Education Cabinet Secretary Julius Ogamba said the Ministry will inspect all public and private basic learning institutions to ensure they adhere to the safety protocols outlined in the Safety Standards Manual.

The CS accused some institutions of flouting the safety guidelines, leading to severe accidents including loss of lives, injuries and damage of property.

“The recent incident at Hillside Endarasha Academy, Nyeri Country, in which 21 innocent learners lost their lives as a result of a fire tragedy, has underscored the need for the Government and school managers to firmly enforce school safety guidelines at all times, if we are to avoid a recurrence of similar cases in the future.” Ogamba stated.

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He revealed that the impromptu checks will be carried out by officials from the Department of Public Works, officers from the County Governments, and those from the Kenya Red Cross.

The first phase of the inspection, which started this week, will cover all boarding Primary and Junior schools in the country, while the second phase of the inspection exercise will cover Secondary schools.

The inspection will provide an opportunity for the Government to unearth reasons behind the recent spate of school fires that have been reported in various schools in the country.

The Ministry warned that firm and decisive action will be taken against Ministry of Education officials, school administrators and managers found to have flouted the guidelines.

The directive follows multiple fire incidents that have been reported in more than five schools in a period of less than a week, with the latest incident reported at John Mbadi Secondary School in Suba, Homa Bay County.