“Unfortunate Bedfellows”: Contextualizing Political Contestations and Right to Education in Kenya

Abstract

Education policies in Kenya are not straight forward and need-based deliberations with the interest of learners at heart. Factors that influence education range from: governance, technology, gender inequalities, geographical disparities, political and ideological components. However, politics has been at the steering wheel of education since the British-Kenya colony (1885-1963). Article 43(1)(f) of the Kenya Constitution (2010) holds the state accountable in the realization of the right to education, as a basic human right. This right is stipulated in international documents, specifically, the United Nations Declaration of Human Rights (UNDHR, 1948) convention on the Rights of the Child (1989) and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (1966). These laws domesticated in Kenya, provide that education is a right to everyone within the state, and should be enjoyed. Yet, to achieve this right remains an uphill task, as most decisions on education are warped in political contestations. These trends have been experienced in post-interdependence Kenya, where regimes use political settlements and contestations to drive the education development and learning agenda. Moreover, Article 53 and the Children’s Act of the constitution (2010) submit that it is the government’s responsibility towards making basic education free. On the other hand, the African Charters on the Welfare and Rights of the Child (1990), and on Human and Peoples Rights (1998), recognize the rights of the child to education. In addition, under Article 2(5) and 2(6) of the Kenyan Constitution (2010), the right to education is stipulated as law. However, political economy is a strong determinant if these rights will be achieved or hindered. The concept of political settlements can be found in studies of industrial capitalism and the welfare state (Melling, 1991); later applied in development studies (Khan 1995) to examine the performance of institutions; also in the argumentation of Fritz (2007) and Whaites (2008). Political settlements give insights in the interpretation of political mechanization and decisions influencing education policies in Kenya. These deliberations account for huge political ideological investment in shaping policy frameworks, albeit with more focus on politics, rather than educational content. The motivation of political settlements in Kenya is heavily pegged on interactive incentives, as opportunities to build reliable networks in the civil service and society and access to development finances. This paper considers Weiner’s (2014) recognition of distinct political settlements: a norm of production and social practice. Further, Weiner (2014) highlights four modes of settlements (arbitration, deliberation, contention, and justification) on the one hand, and balance of power between a social groups on the other. This paper attempts to contextualize the relationship between political economy and the right to education in Kenya. Through document analysis, it seeks to understand how political settlements and contestations influence or hinder access to education as a basic human right.