Tens of thousands of pupils seeking boarding places for Form One next year will have to enrol at day schools within their zones after it was revealed that boarding schools can only enrol 24 000 pupils.
Primary and Secondary Education Minister Cain Mathema has advised pupils who will not make it into boarding schools to accept it and look for places elsewhere. He said:
The nation has 24 000 boarding places. We estimate that about 100 000 learners are seeking boarding places.
Those who will not be successful in securing boarding places will, therefore, be accommodated at day schools in their school zones.
The government introduced an electronic application system for Form One boarding places in 2017 as part of a raft of measures to fight corruption that had become endemic in schools.
However, some stakeholders are of the view that the current enrolment system discriminates against pupils with parents or guardians who are not tech-savvy as they may fail to make the online applications.