The National Transport and Safety Authority (NTSA) has set a target of reducing road fatalities by 50 per cent by 2028, as motorists and boda boda riders in Kwale County call for urgent measures to make roads safer.NTSA Board Chairman Khatib Mwashetani said the authority would address concerns raised by riders, including difficulties accessing driving licenses and NTSA services.He urged boda boda riders to register through Savings and Credit Cooperative Societies (SACCOs) under the Boda Boda Management System (BMS), saying the system would enable authorities to obtain accurate data on riders and motorcycles and improve safety interventions.“Boda boda is a business and it is work,” Mwashetani said, noting that the sector provides employment and income for many young people.Boda Boda Safety Association of Kenya (BAK) Kwale Chairman Mahmud Rajab Mwanyumba said lack of appropriate driving licenses remained a major challenge, with some riders operating without licenses or holding licenses for the wrong category.He also raised concerns over motorcycle insurance costs and called for affordable and transparent insurance premiums.Mwanyumba further called for improved relations between riders and police, saying some unlicensed riders avoid reporting accidents for fear of arrest.“If I do not have a license, does that give you permission to hit me?” he asked, urging authorities to ensure riders can seek justice when involved in crashes.He called for the installation of speed bumps along dangerous sections of the Ukunda-Diani and Beach roads.Ukunda Boda Boda Chairman Rashid Salim Bora identified the stretch from Ibiza through Blue Jay to Markaz as particularly dangerous due to inadequate speed bumps, road signs and pedestrian crossings.“People have died at Ibiza, Msikiti Nuru, Kona ya Musa, Diani Market and Romika,” Bora said.Hamisi Mwero, popularly known as Nayonayo, supported calls for improved road infrastructure but urged authorities to install warning signs ahead of speed bumps to prevent accidents.Meanwhile, Base Commander Mwanahamisi Sheria urged riders to avoid speeding, reckless overtaking and overlapping while ensuring they possess valid licenses, insurance, helmets and reflective gear.She also cautioned tuk-tuk operators against carrying excess passengers, noting that the vehicles are licensed to carry a maximum of three passengers.NTSA Coast Region Head Douglas Nyagwoka said achieving the 2028 target would require a change in behaviour among all road users.“Safety starts with me,” Nyagwoka said, urging riders, drivers, passengers and pedestrians to play their part in reducing road deaths.He warned riders against operating motorcycles under the influence of alcohol or drugs and discouraged motorcycle modifications such as loud exhausts, excessive lights and altered indicators.
Read briefing Kenya increased its education budget to Sh784.5 billion for the 2026/27 financial year, up from Sh702 billion in 2025/26, as the Government steps up investment in teachers, equity, education data and skills development.Principal Secretary for Higher Education and Research Beatrice Inyangala said the increased allocation demonstrated the Government’s commitment to strengthening the education sector and improving learning outcomes.Speaking during the Second East African Community (EAC) Regional Conference on Education in Nairobi on Wednesday, Inyangala said the Sh784.5 billion allocation accounted for about 27 per cent of the national budget and 4.9 per cent of Gross Domestic Product (GDP).She said Kenya had made progress in implementing education reforms through targeted programmes aimed at improving learning outcomes, promoting equity, strengthening teachers and expanding access to education.Inyangala cited the Kenya Primary Education Equity in Learning Programme (KPEEL) and the National Assessment System for Monitoring Learner Achievement (NASMLA) among initiatives supporting efforts to identify disparities and improve learning outcomes.She said Kenya had also continued implementing competency-based education across the country, supported by teacher recruitment, continuous professional development and information and communication technology (ICT) training.Inyangala said the Government had recruited thousands of teachers in recent years to strengthen the teaching workforce, while efforts were being made to retool teachers to effectively deliver competency-based education.“We are prioritising retooling of these teachers so that they can deliver competency-based education using innovative pedagogy,” she said.The PS said the Government was also strengthening accountability in the education sector through improved data management and the operationalisation of the Kenya Education Management Information System (KEMIS).She said KEMIS was designed to provide an integrated platform for managing education data, including learner information, and would support evidence-based planning, resource allocation and monitoring of education outcomes.“This provides a necessary foundation for evidence-based planning and accountability and strengthens the reliability of tracking equity and learning outcomes,” she said.Inyangala said Kenya was also strengthening skills development through Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL), which enables individuals to have skills acquired through informal, non-formal and experiential learning assessed and formally recognised.She said RPL could help workers in the informal sector obtain recognised qualifications and improve their access to employment, further training and other economic opportunities.The PS said Kenya’s experience had demonstrated that targeted financing, particularly funding linked to verified school improvement plans, could contribute to improved learning outcomes in underserved areas.She, however, called for predictable and sustainable education financing, warning that funding constraints could undermine progress made through school improvement and other education programmes.Inyangala also highlighted gender-responsive interventions, including affirmative measures and the 100 per cent transition policy, saying such interventions had contributed to progress towards gender parity at secondary and tertiary levels.Despite increased teacher recruitment, she said, staffing gaps and regional disparities in teacher distribution remained a challenge at primary and junior secondary levels.“This points to the need for recruitment and deployment planning that keeps pace with enrolment growth over the medium term,” she said.Inyangala further said efforts to return children who had dropped out of school were more effective when combined with complementary social support, including cash transfers, community engagement and re-entry programmes.She said the integration of refugee and host-community learners into national education programmes had also supported more comprehensive inclusion.The PS cautioned that increases in nominal education allocations did not necessarily translate into proportional increases in real investment, stressing the need to monitor expenditure against both the national budget and GDP.She said evidence-based financing and stronger expenditure monitoring would be critical to ensuring that increased investment translated into improved outcomes for learners.The National Treasury’s 2026/27 Budget Statement allocated Sh784.5 billion to the Education Sector, including Sh424.3 billion for the Teachers Service Commission, Sh136.6 billion for Basic Education, Sh163.9 billion for Higher Education, Sh1.3 billion for Science, Innovation and Research and Sh58.5 billion for Technical and Vocational Education and Training.The Second EAC Regional Conference on Education brings together policymakers, educators, researchers, development partners and other stakeholders to discuss ways of transforming education systems across the region.
Read briefing Kenya is stepping up research into improved cattle breeds, quality feeds, and climate-resilient pastures as it seeks to increase beef production, improve farmers’ incomes, and bridge the country’s persistent meat deficit.At the Kenya Agricultural and Livestock Research Organization (KALRO) Beef Research Institute in Lanet, Nakuru County, scientists are combining advances in animal breeding, nutrition, and pasture development to help farmers produce heavier animals and better-quality beef at a lower cost.Catherine Ndungu, a research scientist in animal breeding and genetics at the institute, says the improved Boran is one of the breeds with strong potential to drive beef production, particularly in Kenya’s arid and semi-arid areas.“The improved Boran is well adapted to our local environment and can convert available resources into meat,” she says.The breed is heat tolerant, can travel long distances in search of pasture and water, and can withstand harsh conditions that can limit the performance of some exotic breeds.Bulls can reach up to 900 kilogrammes, while females can attain between 450 and 500 kilogrammes. The breed also records a dressing percentage of about 55 to 60 per cent, meaning a significant proportion of its live weight can be converted into carcass meat.Ndungu says such characteristics are increasingly important as climate change continues to place pressure on livestock production.KALRO is conducting research to improve traits including body weight, feed conversion efficiency, adaptability, and disease tolerance before making improved animals available to farmers.The research, Ndungu explains, is also exploring crossbreeding to combine desirable traits from different cattle breeds, saying one programme involves crossing the Improved Boran with the Orma Boran, which is known for greater tolerance to diseases such as trypanosomiasis.“The objective is to develop animals that combine the Improved Boran’s superior body weight with the Orma Boran’s disease tolerance even as KALRO works with Sahiwal, a dual-purpose breed valued for both meat and milk production.For farmers seeking breeding bulls, Ndungu advises them to look beyond size and consider the animal’s overall structure and reproductive potential.Farmers should assess height, body capacity, leg structure, back, and the development of the scrotum. A good beef animal should have a strong body, broad hindquarters, and sound legs capable of carrying its weight as it matures.“Farmers need the right breed for their environment and production goals. If you choose the right animal and manage it properly, beef farming can be profitable,” Ndungu says, adding that their cattle range between Sh150,000 for a dairy cow and Sh250,000 for a bull.But good genetics alone cannot deliver quality beef without proper nutrition, and Lorna Chesire, an animal technologist at the KALRO Beef Research Institute, says researchers are developing locally formulated feed rations to improve weight gain, muscle development, and meat quality in cattle raised under feedlot systems.The institute focuses on finishing steers aged between 24 and 30 months before they are taken to market. “We analyse the feeds before formulation and again after formulation to ensure the animals receive the right levels of energy and protein,” Chesire says.KALRO has developed grass- and silage-based rations incorporating ingredients such as maize germ, Rhodes grass, wheat bran, canola and sunflower concentrates, together with mineral supplements.Researchers are also examining locally available protein sources, including acacia and prosopis pods and leaves, as cheaper alternatives that could help farmers reduce feeding costs.The feeding programme is designed to help farmers achieve faster and more efficient weight gain while producing animals that meet market requirements.Behind every well-fed animal, however, is the pasture that provides the foundation of livestock nutrition, and KALRO research scientist and plant breeder Mercy Jerop says the organisation is developing and evaluating pasture varieties suited to different agro-ecological zones to help farmers cope with climate change and ensure a reliable supply of quality livestock feed.Among the Napier varieties promoted by KALRO are Bana grass and Omega-1, while Super Napier is currently under research following farmers’ reports of its high protein content.The institute has also developed two locally adapted Brachiaria varieties, BS1 and KS1, which mature within three to four months and perform well in medium and dry areas.“Brachiaria can be established using seed or splits and can be used for grazing, silage, and feed blocks,” Jerop says, adding that the grass contains about 12 to 13 percent crude protein, making it an important component of livestock diets.Boma Rhodes, Jerop says, is another pasture suited to medium- and high-altitude areas and is mainly used for hay and seed production.For farmers seeking higher-protein fodder, KALRO is promoting forage sweet potato varieties containing about 18 to 20 percent protein. The crop can be used in cut-and-carry feeding systems or mixed with other grasses.
Read briefing Teachers in Mt. Elgon have been urged to take up housing units allocated to them under the Government’s Affordable Housing Programme.Kenya National Union of Teachers (KNUT) Mt. Elgon Branch Executive Secretary Patrick Cheptum said 20 per cent of the housing units had been reserved for teachers, urging them to register on the Boma Yangu platform to begin the acquisition process.Cheptum said teachers whose salaries were already subject to the Housing Levy should seize the opportunity instead of remaining on the sidelines.“Teachers have a right to benefit from the Affordable Housing Programme. The programme has now stabilised after the initial challenges, so I urge all teachers to download the Boma Yangu app, register and explore the available options,” he said.He was speaking at Kapsokwony Comprehensive School in Mt. Elgon Sub-County during a homecoming ceremony for Grade Six pupil Abel Kibet, who helped Kenya win a silver medal in volleyball at the just-concluded East Africa School Games in Morogoro, Tanzania.Cheptum also challenged teachers to embrace digital platforms rolled out to improve their welfare, including Afya Yangu and the KNUT app, saying the platforms had eased access to services and information.He further urged teachers to play a more active role in identifying and nurturing talent in schools, noting that early support for co-curricular activities could open national and international opportunities for learners while raising the profile of schools and communities.The ceremony brought together teachers, learners, parents and community members to celebrate Kibet, who rose from zonal contests to represent Kenya at the regional games.His coach and sports teacher, Tony Chepkirui, said Kibet progressed through sub-county and national competitions before earning a call-up to the national team.“We are very proud of Abel for representing Mt. Elgon Constituency and Kenya at the East Africa level. His achievement shows the potential our learners have when talent is identified and properly supported,” Chepkiirui said.He described Kapsokwony Comprehensive School as an emerging sporting hub, noting that learners had previously represented the institution in athletics at national level and rugby at regional level.Chepkirui revealed that financial constraints had at one point threatened to end Kibet’s sporting journey, but Headteacher Bosis Boit mobilised teachers to raise funds that enabled him to continue competing.Kibet, who was feted during the ceremony, urged fellow pupils to remain disciplined and committed to their talents.He said discipline and determination had been key to his progress and encouraged other learners not to give up despite challenges.KNUT Mt. Elgon Branch Treasurer Evans Cheseto said teachers had joined the community in celebrating Kibet because his achievement was a source of pride for the teaching fraternity and the wider Mt. Elgon region.He said the silver medal demonstrated what could be achieved when teachers, parents and the community worked together to support learners beyond the classroom.
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