5 eCitizen Essentials for Parental School Fee Payments After Govt Directive
On Saturday, the Ministry of Education surprised the education community by issuing a directive that requires students enrolled in national high schools to submit their school fees using the eCitizen platform.
During that period, the state clarified that the instruction aligned with President William Ruto’s strategy to centralize state payments using a sole pay bill number, which is 222,222.
The recently issued directive aims to safeguard school fees from dishonest teachers and accountants who have been consistently accused of causing financial discrepancies in the institution’s financial records.
In pursuit of this objective, Belio Kipsang, the Principal Secretary of Basic Education, directed school principals to furnish the names of their banks along with the corresponding bank account details for their respective institutions.
“The directorate of e-Citizen in partnership with the Information Communication Technology Authority (ICTA), Ministry of Information, Communication and the Digital Economy, and the National Treasury have been coordinating the onboarding of all government services onto the eCitizen platform to enhance service delivery,” the circular read in part.
While the dedicated platform for paying fees has not been updated on eCitizen, Gossipa2z investigates essential prerequisites for parents attempting to cover the expenses.
Initially, parents or guardians must have a National Identification card and a Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) Personal Identification Number (PIN) certificate, which is essential for the establishment of the eCitizen account.
After gaining access, parents can navigate through a selection of 5,000 online services, directing them to a particular portal where fees are required to be settled.
To finalize the payment, the individuals making the payment need to furnish the student’s name, admission number, and bank account details of the receiving school.
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In the circular, school principals were instructed by the Ministry of Education to furnish details such as the bank account name, account number, branch, and branch code for their respective schools.
“There is no national school that accepts cash and the way you go to the bank to pay school fees is the same way you will go to eCitizen,” stated Ambrose Weda, a lawyer and parent.
“When you go into your account, you will find a portal for fees, open it, give the name of the child, and pay the money.”
The instruction, currently applicable only to pilots in national schools, has raised concerns among school principals and parents. Some have expressed worry, stating that parents facing financial difficulties, who contribute school fees through non-monetary means, will be particularly disadvantaged.
Kathiani Member of Parliament, Robert Mbui, noted that parents providing free services or goods instead of fees would be disproportionately affected. He also anticipated a financial crisis within the institution due to the government’s prolonged delays in funding schools.
Wilson Sossion, the ex-Secretary General of the Kenya National Union of Teachers (KNUT), agreed with the perspective, asserting that parents and guardians still lacked accurate information.
“The move by the government ordering national schools to collect fees via e-citizen has not been explained to the public and parents. However, it is a mandatory requirement, and this policy will eliminate corruption through cash payments,” he explained.
5 eCitizen Essentials for Parental School Fee Payments After Govt Directive