DROUGHT MITIGATION PROGRAMME IN PUBLIC SCHOOLS THAT AWARE THAT, Kenya is experiencing the…

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DROUGHT MITIGATION PROGRAMME IN PUBLIC SCHOOLS THAT AWARE THAT, Kenya is experiencing the most intense, severe and alarming drought in forty (40) years, as a result of the failure of four consecutive rainy seasons, affecting more than twenty (20) counties in arid and semi-arid lands (ASAL); FURTHER AWARE THAT, more than 4.2 million people representing 24% of the ASAL population are facing high levels of acute food insecurity, with about 2.7 million in crisis phase and 785,000 people in emergency state; NOTING THAT, the national and county governments, both local and international development partners and philanthropists have made attempts to respond to the dire situation occasioned by the severe drought; CONCERNED THAT, thousands of children did not attend school during the third term of the academic year 2022 and beginning of 2023 as a result of the ongoing drought; NOW THEREFORE, the Senate urges: - i) the Ministry of East African Community (EAC), the ASALs and Regional Development to develop immediate and long-term interventions to alleviate the ravaging effects of drought and hunger periodically affecting the country and more severely the ASAL areas; ii) the Ministry of Education, in conjunction with the Council of Governors, to establish modalities to ensure no learners are sent away from schools due to lack of school fees to ensure that children from vulnerable families have access to education; and iii) the Ministry of Education, in conjunction with the Council of Governors to implement effective school feeding programmes to ensure that children from vulnerable families in drought-hit regions have access to at least one hot meal per day and that no child misses class due to lack of food.