{"id":21136,"date":"2026-01-13T16:57:16","date_gmt":"2026-01-13T16:57:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/21136\/"},"modified":"2026-01-13T16:57:16","modified_gmt":"2026-01-13T16:57:16","slug":"private-capital-steps-in-as-education-safety-net-as-public-funding-strains-persist","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/21136\/","title":{"rendered":"Private capital steps in as education safety net as public funding strains persist"},"content":{"rendered":"

Centum Real Estate managing director, Kenneth Mbae, \/FILE<\/p>\n

Private sector players are increasingly stepping into Kenya\u2019s education space as an alternative safety net for vulnerable learners, with Centum Investment Company\u2019s real estate subsidiary, Vipingo Development PLC, emerging as a case study in long-term corporate-backed schooling support.<\/p>\n

Over the past nine years, Vipingo Development has spent about Sh135 million to educate 450 academically strong but needy students from Kilifi County and surrounding areas, at a time when public schools continue to grapple with funding constraints and uncertainty under the new Competency-Based Education (CBE) system. \n<\/p>\n

The scholarship programme, launched in 2016, targets learners from low-income households who perform well in national assessments but face the risk of dropping out due to lack of school fees.<\/p>\n


\nThis year, the number of beneficiaries rose to 450, with an additional 50 students set to join the programme as the first cohort transitions into senior secondary school under the CBE framework.<\/p>\n


\n\u201cThe scholarship program reflects Vipingo Development\u2019s belief that education is a cornerstone for socio-economic transformation, and its commitment to nurturing future leaders through structured, long-term academic support,\u201d said the Centum Real Estate managing director, Kenneth Mbae, during award of the scholarships in Kilifi County.<\/p>\n


\n
\nThe expansion comes as education stakeholders raise concerns about the affordability of senior secondary education, particularly for families in rural and peri-urban areas where household incomes remain fragile.<\/p>\n


\n
\nWhile the government has pledged continued support for the new education structure, schools and parents have warned that funding gaps could widen inequality if alternative support mechanisms are not found. \n<\/p>\n


\nUnlike short-term bursaries, Vipingo\u2019s programme commits to paying beneficiaries\u2019 fees throughout their senior secondary education, offering a level of certainty that many public schemes struggle to guarantee.<\/p>\n


\n
\n\u201cThe programme underscores the company\u2019s long-term commitment to education access, community empowerment, and sustainable development within its host communities,\u201d noted the Vipingo Development PLC Board Chair, Ms Catherine Mturi-Wairi. \n<\/p>\n


\nSelection is based on performance in the Kenya Junior Secondary Education Assessment (KJSEA) and verification of financial need. \n<\/p>\n


\nThe initiative also reflects a broader shift in how corporate capital is being deployed, moving beyond one-off donations towards structured, long-term social investment. \n<\/p>\n


\n In addition to secondary education, the programme incorporates vocational training pathways, with some graduates considered for job placements within Centum-backed projects, including the Vipingo mixed-use development. \n<\/p>\n


\nVipingo Development operates a 10,254-acre master-planned project in Kilifi County that integrates industrial parks, residential areas and social infrastructure.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Centum Real Estate managing director, Kenneth Mbae, \/FILE Private sector players are increasingly stepping into Kenya\u2019s education space…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":21137,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[31],"tags":[80,351,352,98,100,353,101,350,99],"class_list":{"0":"post-21136","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-kenya","8":"tag-kenya","9":"tag-kenya-news","10":"tag-star","11":"tag-star-news","12":"tag-star-news-kenya","13":"tag-star-newspaper-kenya","14":"tag-the-star","15":"tag-the-star-kenya","16":"tag-the-star-newspaper"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21136","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=21136"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21136\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/21137"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=21136"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=21136"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=21136"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}