Parents decry harsh economic times as learners troop back to school

Nyeri,

Wednesday January 10, 2024

KNA by Samuel Maina/Wanjiru Nderitu

Parents in Nyeri are complaining of hard economic times, forcing them to dig deeper into their pockets to facilitate their children’s return to school.

Hundreds of students thronged the Nyeri matatu terminus Tuesday as schools reopened after a long December holiday.

 But even as residents continue with the excitement of a new year, a majority of parents who spoke to KNA cited hiked fares, increased prices on stationery, uniforms and other essential goods, as among the biggest big headache they are facing at the moment.

 They say the added costs together with school fees will drain their meagre savings and, in the process, end up impacting negatively on other household expenses.

“The high cost of living has really hit us hard. The price of almost every single item has gone through the roof including the amount of money you are supposed to pay as fare. We as parents are barely making it and it’s becoming almost difficult to meet our everyday needs with the stretched purses we have,” narrates Esther Njeru who also runs a business within Nyeri town.

“Right now, we have been forced to dig deeper into our pockets to purchase new sets of school uniforms for our children as they have already outgrown the older ones. This calls for extra spending for which you may not have budgeted for and at an exorbitant cost at that,” she adds.

For Francis Muchai who has a daughter at the Kerugoya Girls Secondary School, the economic situation in the country is currently putting pressure on parents who are finding it hard to balance between school fees and other pressing needs.

 Muchai laments that the problem has been compounded by the fact that money which some years ago was easy to come by is now becoming elusive by the day.

“We are lamenting about the high cost of living at a time money is becoming an elusive commodity to get. We are under immense pressure from all corners and the school fees is just one of them, which frankly speaking is really weighing us down. Our needs have completely outstripped our earnings,” he laments.

The high cost of fuel has also complicated the lives of Kenyans with the ripple effect being felt in all sectors of the economy.

According to Joseph Gatemu a bodaboda operator in Nyeri town, fuel costs have cut down on their take away home as pillion passengers are unwilling to pay more and would rather walk to their destinations than pay.

He is now calling for the Energy and Petroleum Regulatory Authority (EPRA) to lower down the cost of fuel to ease pressure on those in the transport sector.

“If the Government wants to address the economic challenges facing Kenyans, they should reduce the cost of fuel by at least sh 40 per litre. The high cost of fuel has made things very expensive and impacted negatively on our businesses. Today making profit is becoming a challenge and we are literally running on losses when you include the costs of other overheads like spare parts and maintenance,” said Gatemu.

Last year, EPRA announced a reduction in pump prices after months of rising fuel costs offering relief to millions of Kenyans who had been bogged down by soaring energy prices.

After the review on December 14 last year, a litre of petrol in Nyeri is now retailing at sh.213.85, diesel at sh.202.96, while kerosene is selling at sh.200.52 at the major fuel stations.

The adjustment came after the average cost of imported super petrol dropped by 16.11 percent from $ 827.75 per cubic metre in October 2023 to $ 694.44 per cubic metre in November last year.

Courtesy; KNA