Public and private schools will experience yet another disruption this month as the country prepares to usher in three public holidays starting next week.
The first public holiday will be on Monday 10th October 2022 which was to be a school day. It will be Huduma Day.
Huduma Day, formerly known as Moi Day, is a holiday celebrated on October 10 every year. Although this festival is relatively new to the calendar, its significance is linked to the life and reign of one man.
Previously, Kenyans celebrated Moi Day on October 10. But in December 2019, the Cabinet approved the renaming of Moi Day to Huduma Day.
Huduma Day is a public holiday. It is a day off for the general population, and schools and most businesses are closed.
The second public will be on Thursday 20th October 2022 which is also a school day. It will be Mashujaa Day.
Initially, Mashujaa Day was known as Kenyatta Day and was celebrated in honour of Kenya’s founding President Jomo Kenyatta and a few other freedom fighters.
However, after the new constitution was promulgated on August 24th, 2010, the name was changed, marking a new beginning in Kenya’s history for all shujaas.
The last public holiday this month will be on Monday 24th October 2022 which will also be a school day.
It will be Diwali Day. Diwali, the festival of lights, marks the time when millions of Hindus, Sikhs and Jains across the world celebrate the triumph of good over evil with beautiful rituals such as festive lights, fireworks, sweet delicacies and family gatherings.
In Kenya this day is honoured and is gazetted as a public holiday. Schools have experienced numerous disruptions including from the Covid pandemic and the general elections.
However despite the disruptions no adjustments were made. Schools will close on 25th November 2022 and reopened on 23rd January 2023.