DR. MOSES WOKONO: THE CHAIRMAN WHO TURNED SLUM CLASSROOMS INTO A NATIONAL CAUSE AND WON

For years, they were called "informal." "Unregistered." "Illegal."

Over half a million Kenyan children learning under iron sheets in Kibra, Mathare, Mukuru, Korogocho and Kawangware - dismissed as if their hunger for education was a crime.

One man stood in the gap and said: Enough. These children matter. These schools matter. And Kenya must recognize them.

That man is *Dr. Moses Wokono, the National Chairman of the Unified APBET Schools Association (UASA).*

And on August 26, 2026, history finally vindicated him. The National Assembly passed the Basic Education (Amendment) Bill, 2025 - a law that officially recognizes Alternative Provision of Basic Education and Training (APBET) institutions. A law that carries Dr. Wokono's sweat, voice, and vision on every page.

The Leader Who Refused To Punish The Poor For Being Poor

Dr. Wokono exposed the cruel contradiction at the heart of Kenya's education law.

The Basic Education Act of 2013 recognized only public and private schools. It demanded title deeds, acreage, massive infrastructure, and staffing levels that even some public schools cannot meet.

How do you demand 5 acres from a community school built on a 40x60 plot in Mathare? How do you demand a perimeter wall and a playing field from parents who struggle to afford lunch?

Dr. Wokono told the truth fearlessly: *These registration rules were designed to close APBET schools, not to support them.* They punish the poor for being poor.

His consistent, evidence-based advocacy is why the new Bill now introduces flexibility in registration - a direct win for reality over bureaucracy.

 The Chairman Who Fought On Two Fronts

Dr. Wokono fought where it hurt most.

Nationally, he demanded Formal Recognition. He argued relentlessly that APBET schools are not a nuisance - they are a necessity. Where public schools are absent, APBET schools are present. In Kibra, as Parliament heard, there are about 300 APBET schools against only 11 public primary schools. Without APBET, there is no education in the slums.

At the county level, he fought for survival. He appealed to county governments to waive and minimize business and operational license fees. "You cannot tax a community school like a bar," he told them. "You cannot charge a volunteer teacher the same fee as a trader." That appeal alone has saved hundreds of centres from closure.

More Than An Activist - A Nation Builder

Dr. Wokono did not just protest. He built solutions.

Through the *UASA Savings and Credit Cooperative (UASA-SCCO)*, he gave financial dignity to APBET teachers and directors whom banks ignore. He taught them to save, borrow, and grow.

Through national stakeholder forums, he forced the conversation Kenya had avoided for 13 years. He brought the Ministry, MPs, county officials, and slum school owners to one table and made them listen to the child under the leaking roof.

He pushed for inclusion in NEMIS, for equitable funding in the national budget, and for representation of APBET in national and county education structures. All of which are now provided for in the Bill sponsored by Mathare MP Hon. Anthony Oluoch.

When Hon. Oluoch said the Bill gives effect to Articles 10, 27, 43 and 53 on equality, human dignity and the right to education, he was articulating Dr. Wokono's core philosophy.

When MPs like Hon. Peter Orero, Hon. Dr. James Nyikal and Hon. Moses Kajwang stood up to support the Bill, they were affirming what Dr. Wokono has preached for years: that vulnerable children in informal settlements cannot wait any longer.

 Hongera, Chairman of Courage

In a country where many chairmen chase tenders and allowances, Dr. Wokono chased justice for the forgotten child.

He is not a man of big offices and big convoys. He is a man of big heart and big impact. He chose the muddy alleys over boardrooms, because that is where Kenya's real education crisis lives.

Today, because of him, APBET will be counted. APBET will be funded. APBET will be protected. APBET learners will sit for national exams with dignity. Counties will maintain databases. The government will finally see what Dr. Wokono has always seen.

Over half a million learners can now walk to school knowing that the law finally knows their name.

Kenya, let us give this man his flowers.

Dr. Moses Wokono - The Voice of the Slum Classroom. The Defender of the Forgotten. The Father of Recognition.

The Bill has passed. The children have won. And your name, Chairman, will forever be engraved on this historic victory.

Hongera sana, Mwenyekiti!