About Sh612 million was spent to upgrade 68 Makueni secondary schools in 2017-18, a state officer said on Tuesday.
County commissioner Mohamed Maalim said the projects were meant to support 100 per cent transition from primary school.
"The county registered 98.3 per cent transition rate this year. The government is committed to ensuring the schools have enough dormitories and other infrastructural facilities," he said.
Maalim urged school heads to ensure the funds are spent on targeted projects. He tasked chiefs with ensuring pupils who applied to join TVETs are taken to secondary schools.
"There is no reason for such shortcuts when the government has already offered free day secondary education."
Maalim spoke during the opening of the Eastern Region Film and Theatre Festival (Drama Festival) at Mwaani Girls’ Secondary School.
It started on Friday last week and will end tomorrow. The festival's theme is 'Enhancing moral responsibility among our youths through talent'.
Maalim urged TV stations to record and air drama as documentaries to promote local talent. The documentaries would make for better content than the movies from Western countries, he said.
Maalim said drama is informative, educative and entertaining and must be preserved for future generations.