26% drop out before O-Level completion

AT LEAST 26 percent of pupils dropped out of school before completing their Ordinary level last year and most of them were boys.

The Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education 2020 Statistical Report which was released yesterday shows that most boys dropped out of school due to expulsions, financial challenges while some left school to seek employment.

The report shows that most girls dropped out of school due to pregnancies and child marriages.

This is despite the fact that the country's Education Act allows pregnant girls to remain in class.

It also criminalises sending home pupils for non-payment of fees or levies.

The Ministry noted that there are more chances of the girls dropping out of school at primary level than boys.

"At national level, Early Childhood Development (ECD) completion rate is 76,36 percent while at Primary School completion rate is 86,78 percent. The completion rate for lower Secondary School is 64,05 percent while that for upper Secondary is 14,36 percent," read the Ministry's report.

The report stated that more males than females drop out of secondary school due to financial constraints, abscondment, child labour, special needs, deaths and expulsions.

The Ministry said out of the six million pupils in school, more than a million were classified Orphaned and Vulnerable Children (OVCs).

It said the number of vulnerable learners increased in the past year following the outbreak of Covid-19 pandemic.

This year Government committed to paying school fees for at least 1,5 million vulnerable learners under BEAM.