How KICD's veil of secrecy undermines our education

Kenya Institute of Curriculum Development. [File, Standard]

The Kenya Institute of Curriculum Development (KICD) stands exposed as a bastion of opacity, flagrantly violating the spirit of our Constitution.

Article 10 demands transparency and accountability from all public institutions, yet KICD’s book approval process operates in the shadows, shrouded in secrecy that breeds suspicion, inefficiency, and potential corruption. This is a deliberate betrayal of the nation’s trust, jeopardising the education of millions of children and enriching a select few.

Consider the facts. Publishers submit books for evaluation, pay hefty fees per proposal, only to vanish into a black box of anonymous panels and undisclosed criteria. KICD does not publicly disclose the number of submissions each cycle, leaving stakeholders in the dark about the scale and competitiveness of the process.

Worse still, detailed reasons for approvals or rejections remain hidden from public view, shared only privately with publishers who can afford appeals. The so-called “Orange Book” lists approved titles, but it is a superficial facade—devoid of accompanying evaluation scores, panel comments, or justifications.

Why the secrecy? In a system where lobbying whispers and errors persist despite claims of “99.9 per cent error-free” vetting, one can’t help but suspect favouritism and graft. KICD’s failures have manifested in chaos. Just weeks ago, the institute issued urgent warnings about rampant counterfeit Grade 10 curriculum designs flooding the market, urging parents and schools to verify authenticity. Such fakes thrive precisely because the approval process lacks public transparency.

How can educators and stakeholders distinguish genuine materials when the decision-making rationale is locked away? Earlier, reports emerged of unapproved learning materials infiltrating schools, further eroding confidence. And let us not forget the delayed release of approved books for 2025, with KICD admitting corrections were needed until February, forcing parents into last-minute scrambles and exposing children to subpar resources. These are symptoms of a rotten core. Audits have flagged wasteful spending, and educators decry the process as opaque, ripe for corruption, where influential publishers might sway outcomes behind closed doors. This constitutional dereliction has consequences.

Kenya’s shift to Competency-Based Curriculum (CBC) and now Competency-Based Education (CBE) in 2025 promised innovation, but without accountable vetting, we are saddling students with flawed texts that perpetuate inequalities. Rural schools suffer most, reliant on whatever trickles down from this unaccountable monopoly. It is outrageous that in a democracy, parents, teachers, and taxpayers are denied the right to question why one book passes while another fails. It’s time for a unified uprising against this educational tyranny. I propose an immediate petition, spearheaded by a coalition of stakeholders, including the National Parents Association, authors’ guilds, and alumni networks from across the nation. This strongly worded letter, addressed to KICD’s CEO, the Cabinet Secretary for Education, and Parliament’s Education Committee, must demand radical reforms.

First, mandate public disclosure of all submission totals, including breakdowns by subject and publisher. Second, require detailed, anonymised reasons for every decision—published online in a searchable database—to expose biases and errors. Third, establish independent oversight panels with civil society representation to audit evaluations annually. Backed by the Access to Information Act and Article 119’s petition rights, this call would invoke court intervention if ignored, compelling KICD to align with constitutional mandates.

A transparent process would deter counterfeiters, empower authors and publishers with fair feedback, and restore faith in our curriculum. It would slash corruption by sunlight, ensuring every shilling spent on education yields quality, not scandal.

Stakeholders, must unite now and draft this petition, gather signatures digitally and in communities, and submit it while the school year is fresh lest we condemn future generations to mediocrity tomorrow.