New access road ends decades of isolation for Kiine Girls students

Aerial view of the newly completed 820-metre access road at Kiine Girls High School in Kirinyaga County, improving safety, mobility, and learning access for students and the community

For half a century, Kiine Girls High School lost learning time not to poor teaching or lack of ambition but to 820 metres of missing road that turned a 1.5-kilometre journey into hours of delay every time it rained.

The school, established in 1973 in Kirinyaga West Sub-county, Kirinyaga County, sits just 1.5 kilometres from the main road.

Yet for decades, that short distance became impassable during heavy rains, cutting off emergency services, disrupting exams and forcing teachers to walk through mud.

"The soils would just be on the road. The buses could not access. Teachers would come very muddy and tired," said Chief Principal Jane Nyawira Murigu-Waweru.

Flooding at a nearby culvert blocked the school completely during heavy rains. Suppliers refused to deliver food and materials. Emergency vehicles could not reach the compound.

Even national examinations were disrupted.

"You would be told by those transporting the exams, 'tafadhali tembea' (please walk) because we cannot help you," Murigu-Waweru, a resident, recalled.

 "You arrive late, muddy, exhausted and then you are expected to supervise an exam."

The situation stripped away learning time and morale.

"Time used to be wasted on the road," she noted. "If you are stuck coming to a class, that lesson is gone. But now we have saved time and increased contact hours with our students."

The school's struggle mirrors a broader infrastructure crisis in Kenya's rural education system.

A 2021 World Bank report found education outcomes are much lower in rural areas, with significant challenges remaining in infrastructure development.

Many rural schools continue to operate without proper access roads, affecting thousands of students across the country.

The situation at Kiine Girls changed on April 26, 2025, after the completion of an 820-metre bitumen-standard access road built by the Kenya National Highways Authority (KeNHA) under the Kenol-Sagana Road Project.

The road was later commissioned by Deputy President Kithure Kindiki.

The Kenol-Sagana-Marua Highway Project, a 84-kilometre dual carriageway funded by the African Development Bank and the Government of Kenya, includes several social initiatives alongside the main road construction.

The Kiine access road was built as part of these complementary interventions.

Resident Reuben Mwangi said the impact extends beyond the school gates.

"Since I was born, I knew there was no proper road here," he observed. "When it rained, even a wheelbarrow could not pass. We had to carry things on our shoulders to the tarmac."

The new road, complete with drainage and safety features, has ended seasonal flooding and restored mobility for the entire community.

"For the first time, we have something we can see," Mwangi said, adding, “Not a promise. Something you can see."

For Kiine Girls, which currently enrols more than 700 students, the effects are immediate: reliable supply deliveries, safer access for ambulances and fire engines and restored dignity.

"The school had many names that were not pleasant," the chief principal said, noting, "But today we are happy that even our girls are very clean."

She acknowledged that the road still stops short of the gate, but said the transformation is undeniable.

"What used to take one hour now takes 20 minutes on foot, or five minutes by car," she explained.

For a school that endured five decades of isolation, the 820-metre stretch has restored what was lost: time, access and dignity.

"For the first time in decades, teachers and students can reach the school without disruption," Murigu-Waweru added.