The government is striking deals with various institutions to have retirement age of their employees extended to 65 years.
This according to the state officials is geared towards retaining technical and specialized skills in its various department.
Already the retirement age of tutors at Kenya Technical Trainers Colleges (KTTC) was extended to 65 years.
The Ministry of Education has proposed to extend the retirement age of Technical and Vocational Education trainers and principals by this year.
The ministry is in discussion with the Public Service Commission to actualise the proposal.
Vocational and Technical Training PS Margaret Mwakima said the discussion is in final stages to see their retirement age extended.
Mwakima wondered why it should not happen with TVET institutions, when it’s already happening at the Kenya Technical Trainers Colleges.
“This is what we want to progress to and we are hoping the Public Service Commission will support us,” she said.
“I know some people will think this will disadvantage the youth but what we are saying is once a skill is acquired, it is made sharper with experience and time.”
She said the department has not recruited for a while and therefore cannot afford to lose the experienced trainers.
There is also an ongoing discussion with the PSC to have TVET principals given position of directors, especially those running institutions of more than 5,000 trainees.
“Most principals are running institutions with over 10,000 compared to others with less than 5,000 students yet they are directors,” she said.
“Others have been running over 100 programmes in one institution.”
She observed the promotion will motivate principals to continue serving with dedication and commitment.
“We also want to celebrate our academic and non-academic staff and I wish to appreciate your patience. We have been promoting you and we will continue because we also wish to do better as we go into the next financial year,” she said.
The PS assured the board of governors and councils in other TVET institutions that the government was committed to them.
The PSC, Mwakima said, has allowed the ministry to recruit another 3,000 trainers, saying beginning the next financial year, the ministry will start by recruiting at least 1,000.
Those employed by boards and councils will be considered because of their experience.
The government is investing resources in modernising and expanding TVETS to meet the human resource needs of the industry and reequip the institutions.
The ministry, she added, is also finalising discussions to elevate nine TVET institutions into national polytechnics.
This will increase the national polytechnics from 13 to 22 nationally.
The government has invested in increasing TVET institutions from 52 in 2013 to 238 in 2022 at a cost Sh10.6 billion.
“Out of the 238 TVET institutions, 192 are operational and 46 are nearing completion,” she said.
She said due to the Sh10.3 billion capitation government grants and Sh11.1 billion Helb loans to TVET trainees since 2019, there has been an increase in enrolment from 55,945 in 2013 to 249, 316 in 2022.
The institution’s Chief principal Anne Mwangi said 2853 trainees graduated with higher diploma, diploma and certificates.
The polytechnic has 7,345 trainees, 3,900 males and 3,414 females.
The idiots have looted billions meant for retiree lumpsums and pensions thus the extension to push the burden to the next government very useless
That is a clever way of saving on lumpsums and pensions as it is cheaper to pay a person death gratuity than paying lumpsum and monthly pension
Government, should be abit serious, next time, retirement age will go to 70 years,ad finally people will in their place of work.
Shortage of experienced personnel with Technical skills is widespread not just in the education, but in our entire public sector. In fact it is a crisis. What is being proposed here in my view, amounts to postponing the problem, not the solution. So what happens after five years? Will the problem have gone away? I doubt it. Not unless the proposal is part of a wider personnel management transion plan that the government has yet to make public.
In the late seventies, Moi’s government went against the wishes of the IMF and expanded public service employment opportunities to the then youth. (These inluded new University Graduates Form six and Form four leavers). These are the workers that have been retiring at 55 then 60 beginning since 2005.
It is very unfortunate that the said institutes do not embrace succession.They should recruit young people to work under this so called experienced personnel
What of all those graduates that are being spitted out by universities and colleges on a daily basis still tarmacking looking for jobs? How can a 65 year old, be actually productive? They don’t have anything at NSSF so they find a cunning way!
I fully concur with you, how will the future be if no mentorship program is in place? Just wondering how the youth will be incorporated in all this arrangement
I echo the plan to employ new t vet teachers working in board casual employment, they are really in need of full support since their pay is so little compared to what they are doing in class
I echo the plan to employ new t vet teachers working in board casual employment, they are really in need of full support since their pay is so little compared to what they are doing in class
Signs of a broke government! Why not employ the young graduates instead of extending the retirement age of wazees??
Very very sad.
After 55 the body is already tired and productivity is very low.
These public officers should have mentored their successors.
Many government institutions are unable to pay the pension benefits and this is information in the public arena.
In addition the retirees need their pension early for it to be of meaningful help.
I suggest retirement goes back to 55.
build up of non employed youth can be a menace if retirement age is extended,why don’t the gov’t maintain some of these professionals on contract
what
This is unacceptable and must be resisted by all sane Kenyans.Revert the retirement age to 55yrs.Look at what is happening in county governments.70% of them have two sets or more of employees. Three drivers for one vehicle. Accounting officers three times the optimum number, then a proposal to increase retirement age. Sort the mess and maintain 55yrs.
55 yrs is the best age
55 yrs is the best age
Let the seniors go and create jobs for the young, with the skills and knowledge they have.
This is abuse of the personal right to retirement.
In fact, government knows that a lot of our income is it’s revenue through PAYE and it’s what keeps it going.
Let them allow those who wish to retire do so and those who wish to not retire remain in service.