Two Secondary Schools Shut Down Due to Declining Enrollment and Poor KCSE Performance

Two Secondary Schools Shut Down Due to Declining Enrollment and Poor KCSE Performance

Two Secondary Schools in Kiambu County Close Due to Declining Enrollment and Poor Performance

Two secondary schools in Kiambu County, Ragia and Kiambogo, have been shut down following a sharp decline in student enrollment in 2025.

Additionally, these schools faced poor performance in the 2024 Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) exams, which contributed to the decision to close them.

Benjamin Muthengi, the Lari Sub-county education officer, confirmed the closures and shared that some of the school’s buildings, such as classrooms, have been repurposed into storage areas.

Science laboratories, which were completed for practical examinations last year, have also remained unused since then.

Muthengi explained that Ragia Secondary School, in particular, was shut down due to its low enrollment. “In January this year, the school did not receive any new students,” he stated.

Local education stakeholders and political leaders in the area are calling for a meeting to discuss the possibility of merging the two schools in an effort to improve the quality of education within the constituency. This proposal is being considered as a solution to the dwindling student numbers.

At Ragia Secondary School, the student population had dropped to just 150 students from Form One to Form Four, with only two classes for each form. As a result, many parents from the local community have opted to withdraw their children and send them to nearby schools that have larger student bodies.

While the exact reasons behind the low enrollment at these schools remain unclear, Lari MP Joseph Mburu believes that the poor academic performance may have played a role in the decline.

“We are engaging with the community, and if they agree, we will formally request the Ministry of Education to consider merging the two schools and repurpose one of the buildings for other uses,” MP Mburu stated.

The situation in Kiambu County is similar to a case in Mugwandi village, located in Kirinyaga County, where a school has only one Form Two student and eight teachers.

The school’s staffing situation has raised concerns, with residents criticizing the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) for delaying the appointment of a headteacher.

Locals also expressed apprehension about enrolling their children in the school due to its unfortunate name, “Mugwandi,” which translates to “failure” in the Kikuyu language.

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