Nairobi is the most loved region by teachers seeking transfers, the latest data from the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) shows.
According to the data, which was submitted by the commission to the Senate Committee on Education, a total of 36,277 teachers countrywide applied for transfers between November 1, 2022, and January 31, 2023. Of all the transfers, only 14,733 were matched and approved while 21,544 are pending.
During the period, some 1,885 teachers applied to be transferred to the capital. This is against 76 who requested to be transferred out of Nairobi during the period. Some 41 requests out of 1,162 to primary schools and four to secondary schools out of 723 were approved by TSC by end of January.
Bungoma County received the highest number of transfer requests by primary school teachers who wanted to move in at 1,336 teachers. Meanwhile, the number of those who wanted to be transferred out of Bungoma County stood at 1,074 teachers.
Mombasa County is also a favorite among secondary school teachers, with 340 applying to move to the Coastal City against 55 who asked to be moved out. It was followed by Kajiado which recorded 237 transfer requests for teachers in secondary schools against 94 who requested to be transferred out of the county. For primary school teachers, 486 applied to work in the county against 434 who asked to be taken elsewhere.
Counties that the TSC classifies as “hard-to-staff” were hit by massive requests to leave with only a few teachers requesting to be moved into the counties. In Samburu County, 94 secondary school teachers and 246 primary schools applied to leave the county with only nine secondary and 134 primaries requesting to move into the county. Meanwhile, in Turkana county,129 secondary school teachers wish to move out against 23 who wished to go to the county. Some 37 teachers have since left the county and an equal number brought in.
TSC Chief Executive Officer Nancy Macharia told the committee that the transfer of teachers from one institution to another is based on the need for equitable distribution and optimal utilization of teachers. The transfers are also based on gaps in the station, the need for replacement, existing staffing norms, and medical grounds certified by a registered medical practitioner.
