Mombasa governor attempts a Ndindi Nyoro with free meals and cut fees
- Created by AVDelta News Reporter
- Education
Under the new arrangement, Mombasa County will provide food for all public day secondary schools, effectively reducing costs by about Sh12,000 per learner.
Mombasa Governor Abdulswamad Nassir's administration will on Monday begin delivering foodstuffs to public day secondary schools as part of a restructuring of its bursary programme.
He said on Saturday the move is aimed at making secondary education more affordable.
This is seen as an attempt to implement what Murang'a's Kiharu MP Ndindi Nyoro has successfullyimplemented.
“We believe no child should drop out because education is too expensive,” Governor Nassir said.
“By feeding learners at school and lowering fees, we’re adopting a model that has worked well in Kiharu, and we are determined to make it work in Mombasa.”
Under the new arrangement, the county will provide food for all public day secondary schools, effectively reducing costs by about Sh12,000 per learner.
With additional support from the National Government Constituencies Development Fund (NG‑CDF) through local Members of Parliament, parents in Mombasa can now expect to pay between Sh1,000 and Sh2,000 per term.
Mr Nassir’s programme mirrors Ndindi Nyoro’s Masomo Bora initiative in Kiharu, where day secondary school fees were capped at Sh500 per term and learners receive daily meals, including lunch and nutritious supplements.
In Kiharu, the NG‑CDF has also funded revision materials, infrastructure improvements, and learning support without placing additional costs on parents.
“What we did in Kiharu by launching a programme where learners pay Sh500 per term is the journey toward truly affordable basic education for Kenyan families,” Mr Nyoro told reporters earlier this year.
At a signing ceremony at Ronald Gideon Ngala Grounds, the county government and boards of management of all public day secondary schools formalised the reforms.
The Regional Director of Education, representing Cabinet Secretary Julius Ogamba, joined MPs Mohamed Soud Machele (Mvita), Bady Twalib (Jomvu), and Mishi Mboko (Likoni), businessman Said Abdalla, and county assembly members led by Ibrahim Bomoa Oyugi, chair of the Education Committee, in supporting the initiative.
Governor Nassir said the coordinated programme shows how county and national resources can work together to make schooling affordable and inclusive.
“This is a practical, sustainable way to keep our children in school,” he said.
