As the Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) 2024 examinations kick off this week, the government has issued fresh orders for all candidates.
A total number of 965,501 registered candidates are set to sit for KCSE, according to the Kenya National Examinations Council (KNEC).
The 2024 KCSE exams, whose rehearsals begun on October 18, kicked off on Tuesday October 22 with practical exams and are scheduled to end on November 22.
French, German, Sign Language, Arabic, Music and Home Science which commenced across the 10,755 exam centers across the country dominate the first week of this year’s KCSE examinations.
Following the commencement of the exams, State Department for Citizen Services Principal Secretary Julius Bitok on Tuesday directed that all 2024 KCSE candidates be issued with the new generation National Identity (ID) cards dubbed Maisha Cards before the examinations end.
PS Bitok while appearing before the National Assembly’s Education, Research and Technology committee highlighted that the issuance of ID cards to those who will have attained 18 years and above is intended to ease access to university education and other tertiary institutions.
Bitok while issuing the directive said that besides easing access for tertiary education, it will ease access to Higher Education Loans Board (HELB) and scholarships.
In addition, he highlighted that the joint exercise, led by the Ministries of Interior and Education, will ensure students who join universities and colleges are not disadvantaged by missing identification documents.
“We have mobilized our registration officers across the country to issue Maisha Cards to eligible candidates to enable those who qualify to join local or international universities, apply for Higher Education Loans Board, scholarships and other post-high school pursuits,” said Bitok.
Maisha Namba Cards
The government has been accelerating the issuance of the new-generation National Identity Cards after the High Court earlier this year lifted previous orders that had halted the Ministry of Interior from processing new ID card applications, since December 5th, 2023.
The High Court had on July 25th, 2024, issued a conservatory order that temporarily barred the Government from the issuance of Maisha Namba Card.
Also Read: KCSE 2024: Storm as Schools, Parents Oppose KNEC Exam Rules
Following the Government’s appeal, the High Court set aside the conservatory order on August 12, 2024, allowing the National Registration Bureau (NRB) to resume the printing of new and duplicate National ID cards.
Judge Justice Lawrence Mugambi set aside the conservatory orders he issued on July 25, noting that there is no juridical significance that is left in the Petitioner/Respondent’s application of July 23, 2024.
As of August 27, the government had printed over half a million Maisha Cards following the review by the High Court in its ruling on the rollout of the IDs.
The State Department for Immigration and Citizen Services in a statement revealed that NRB had printed 505,197 National IDs within the period since the High Court order.
“By July 25th, 2024, 451,228 National ID card applications (130,302 new and 320,926 duplicates) had been received at NRB and were in various stages of production. An additional 108,697 National ID card applications were received between August 12th and 26th, 2024, at the NRB production center,” read part of the statement.
KCSE 2024
The new directive issued to KCSE 2024 candidates comes after the Ministry of Education on October 4 released new guidelines that will guide this year’s assessment.
Also Read: KNEC Clarifies 2024 KCSE Exam Timetable
Key among them were the rotation of center supervisors who will not be allowed to sit at an examination center for more than a week and their mobile phones as well as those of the invigilators remaining at a secured location away from exam rooms.
KCSE 2024 candidates will also have personalized question papers with their details pre-printed.
The KCSE exam will run concurrently with the KPSEA assessment that begins on October 28, with more than a million candidates expected to sit the assessment.
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