TSC to Hire 40,000 Teachers by 2026 in Major Recruitment Drive.
The government has unveiled an ambitious plan to hire 40,000 more teachers by the end of 2026 as part of a wider effort to improve the teacher-student ratio in public schools. According to Basic Education Principal Secretary Julius Bitok, 24,000 of these teachers will be recruited by the end of 2025, with an additional 16,000 expected to join the system in 2026.
This initiative is part of a broader strategy to fulfill the Kenya Kwanza administration’s promise of employing 116,000 teachers within a five-year period.
Speaking at the 60th anniversary celebration of Baringo High School, PS Bitok confirmed that the government is actively addressing the teacher shortage through a structured recruitment campaign. He emphasized that the state had already hired 76,000 teachers and would add 24,000 this year to reach 100,000, leaving the final 16,000 hires for next year
This announcement coincides with a recent move by the National Assembly Committee on Education, which recommended an allocation of Sh7.3 billion to the Budget and Appropriations Committee. The funds would be used to convert 20,000 intern teachers into permanent and pensionable positions beginning July 2025.
Previously, the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) had informed Parliament that no financial provision had been made for their absorption, although the interns had been contracted for a one-year term starting January 2025.
In a report on the 2025/26 budget, the committee appealed to the Budget and Appropriations Committee to ensure that the intern teachers would be absorbed once their contracts expire later in the year. Legislators stressed that failing to integrate them would worsen the current staffing crisis.
Earlier in April 2025, the TSC raised concerns about a major deficit in teaching personnel. While appearing before the Constitutional Implementation Oversight Committee, TSC CEO Nancy Macharia disclosed that the country was experiencing a shortfall of 98,261 teachers, including those required for junior secondary education. She also warned that the figure was likely to rise with the introduction of senior secondary schools in 2026.
Nancy Macharia emphasized that the shortage not only affected quantity but also quality, suggesting that the education system risks collapse if the gap is not addressed urgently.
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To manage the shortage in the short term, the government has continued to use internships as a transitional measure for unemployed teachers. Education Cabinet Secretary Julius Ogamba, while addressing Parliament, stated that 343,485 registered teachers remain unemployed. These include 84,510 post-primary, 124,061 primary school, and 134,914 Early Childhood Development Education (ECDE) teachers.
Ogamba revealed that the TSC is still in the process of determining how many ECDE teachers have been employed by county governments. He noted that employment depends largely on available funds, vacancies, and overall budgetary provisions.
“The Commission ensures continuity in curriculum delivery by replacing teachers who exit the system immediately,” said the CS. He explained that the internship programme, guided by the 2019 Teacher Internship Policy and Guidelines, has enhanced job readiness for 94,300 interns so far.
Last year, the government took a significant step by converting 39,550 junior school teachers from contract to permanent roles. Additionally, 8,378 primary school teachers were reassigned to junior schools following curriculum and infrastructure upgrades.
TSC statistics indicate that between the 2022/2023 and 2024/2025 financial years, a total of 68,313 teachers were recruited for junior schools, encompassing both intern and permanent hires.
According to the 2025 Economic Survey, the number of learners in schools has steadily increased. Pre-primary enrolment reached 2.914 million in 2024, up from 2.885 million in 2023. Primary and junior school enrolment also climbed by 3.2 percent to 10.733 million, while secondary school enrolment grew by 5.2 percent, reaching 4.321 million learners in the same year.
Despite these gains, the number of teachers in public primary schools fell by 3.2 percent, standing at 212,602 in 2024. On the other hand, the number of educators in public secondary schools and teacher training colleges rose from 125,563 in 2023 to 130,818 in 2024.
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PS Bitok stated during his address that the recruitment is not just about numbers but fulfilling a national obligation to ensure quality education. He said the pledge to employ 116,000 teachers would be achieved as promised. He added that failure to meet these goals would affect education quality and limit access to basic education.
Meanwhile, CS Ogamba told Parliament that the TSC is actively working to match jobless registered teachers with existing vacancies, highlighting the urgency of the matter. He noted that absorbing teachers is contingent on financial commitment at both national and county levels.
TSC to Hire 40,000 Teachers by 2026 in Major Recruitment Drive.