15,000 students missed school due to deadly floods — survey

A new survey has shown that 15,000 students missed school due to the deadly floods that rocked the country.

The rapid survey, conducted in June of this year, was to assess the impact of the 2024 floods on schools across Kenya.

Covering 60 schools in nine counties, the survey painted a troubling picture of the post-flood educational landscape.

Elimu Bora Working Group found that more than 62 primary schools were submerged, putting 15,000 students at risk of missing school. 

Along the Tana River, 34 cases of cholera were reported and over 20,000 toilets were damaged. 

The surveyed schools experienced a decrease in the overall student population, with female students and those with special needs disproportionately affected.

“In one example, surveyed schools enrolled 23,530 students before heavy rains and floods, which decreased to 21,453 afterwards—a nine per cent reduction due to flooding,” part of the report reads.

“Female student return rates dropped by approximately 10 per cent, and 11 per cent of students with special needs—40 out of 337—were yet to return.” 

The survey reveals widespread infrastructure damage that left many schools with non-functional facilities.

Some buildings remained unsafe but were occupied due to a lack of alternatives.

“Most of the affected schools were not fully prepared for teaching and learning when they reopened in May 2024. Some schools had served as IDP camps, and after reopening, the displaced were relocated to higher ground in temporary structures.”

The survey cited a school in Kobuya, where IDPs had been moved to other facilities, as students and their parents continued to seek support from nearby schools.

Across all assessed subcounties, there was a glaring absence of a well-structured disaster response and coordination framework.

“The disaster preparedness cycle often falls short, leading to delayed responses during emergencies such as annual floods. Existing avenues for rapid response are either inadequate or compromised, failing to mitigate disasters effectively.”

Most institutions were found to lack proper disaster response and coordination frameworks, hindering effective crisis management.

“This absence hindered accurate and timely data collection and fact-checking at the school, local, and sub-county levels. Ad-hoc responses based on trial and error had proven insufficient in addressing these disasters.”

Alarmingly, less than 20 per cent of schools surveyed received financial or material assistance for reconstruction or repairs from the government.

"Schools, teachers, non-teaching staff, students and communities were largely unprepared for the reopening and continuity of learning due to widespread destruction and lack of repairs in classrooms, staff rooms, latrines, laboratories, workshops, playgrounds, libraries, dormitories and other facilities.”

Many students returned to school weeks late due to impassable roads, causing them to fall behind in their studies.

Some schools had collapsed latrines and damaged water sources, which posed serious health risks to students and staff.

Additionally, the schools failed to incorporate necessary mental health and psychosocial support for affected students, teachers and staff.

These include proper drainage systems and elevated construction.

The survey also recommended the establishment of a structured school infrastructure development, improvement and maintenance programme.

The implementation of a collaborative, multi-stakeholder recovery approach after disasters, incorporating flood mitigation measures into physical planning systems and development were also proposed.

Other recommendations were employing ongoing training and capacity development programmes focused on disaster preparedness, prevention, response and mitigation.

The April-May 2024 floods phenomena impacted the education sector negatively, leaving hundreds dead, residents displaced, schools and homes swept away and roads and bridges destroyed.

As of May 10, 2024, an estimated 267 people had been killed, 188 injured, and 75 missing, while 281,835 people (56,367 families) were displaced and almost 380,573 (76,114 families) affected by persistent heavy rains and flooding, according to the National Disaster Operations Centre.

In addition, more than 9,973 livestock had been lost 41,562 acres of cropland and 61 roads damaged 886 businesses, 1,967 schools, 1,465 water sources and 62 health facilities were damaged in 11 out of 42 counties affected by floods.

As schools prepared to be reopened, the Kenya government announced that Sh1 billion (US$7.5 million) was needed to rehabilitate schools affected by the floods.

More than 20,000 toilet blocks either sunk or severely damaged by raging floodwaters, posing serious health risks to over 1.5 million schoolchildren across the country.

Some 34 cases of cholera had been reported along the Tana River, with fears that the number could rise as children were poised to resume school.

Several informal settlements in urban areas suffered massively. For instance, in Nairobi, more than 7,000 people had been displaced in the informal settlement of Mathare alone.