MP Adow Advocates for Local Teacher Training to Address North Eastern Region Education Crisis

Nairobi , – Wajir South Member of Parliament (MP) Mohamed Adow has stated the key solution in addressing the ongoing teacher crisis in the North Eastern region lies in the training and recruitment of local teachers. 

Mr. Adow expressed reservations about the Teacher Service Commission (TSC), which he labeled as xenophobic and ineffective in the context of the region’s education needs.

He asserted that relying solely on external sources for teachers has hindered the educational progress of the North Eastern region. 

“It is highly significant to recruit teachers who are familiar with the local culture, languages, and challenges faced by students in the area,” said Adow. 

Adow, a former journalist argued that this approach would not only enhance the quality of education but also contribute to fostering a sense of belonging and understanding among students and educators.

Mr Adow is a renowned former Al Jazeera journalist with Qatar-based Al Jazeera as Africa correspondent before he was transferred to Doha as a world correspondent in Africa, the Middle East and Europe in 2017. Photo/ Courtesy 

“The only solution to the teacher crisis in the North Eastern region is and remains the training and recruitment of local teachers,” MP Adow stated firmly. 

“We can’t expect anything good to come out of the xenophobic TSC. We in Wajir South have long recognized that. We are training hundreds of our own,” he added, highlighting the proactive steps his constituency has taken to address the issue.

The North Eastern region has grappled with educational challenges, including teacher shortages and quality disparities, for years.

Local leaders have been calling for a paradigm shift in teacher recruitment igniting discussions about the potential benefits of cultivating a pool of teachers who are intimately connected to the local population.

Hundreds of teachers from the North Eastern Kenya region on Tuesday camped outside the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) headquarters in Nairobi demanding transfers over insecurity.

Drawn from Mandera, Wajir and Garissa counties, the teachers said they were not returning to their duty stations until their employer moved them from the region.

Primary and secondary schools reopened for this year’s third term on Monday.

According to the Kenya National Union of Teachers (KNUT), Mandera County alone currently needs more than 2,000 teachers to fill the gap in 300 public primary schools and another 550 public secondary schools.

The region lost 28 teachers in 2014 after a bus they were travelling in while heading to Nairobi for the December holidays was attacked. 

In January 2020, the region faced another teacher crisis after TSC transferred tutors from other parts of the country, citing insecurity after three of them were killed by al-Shabaab during a night raid.