More schools open amid foreign curricular hype
For a long time, elite international schools have been a preserve of the already established swanky suburbs of Nairobi such as Karen and Westlands.
But with the shrinking of land, which has led to the ballooning of property prices, developers putting up international schools have resorted to investing in the city outskirts and in towns such as Eldoret and Thika.
One area turning into a destination for the elite schools is Kamiti in Kiambu county, which stretches along the Kiambu-Kahawa West road and the Kiambu-Ruiru Road.
Investors are being lured here by a serene environment, availability of affordable land and mushrooming housing projects.
Coming up are elite schools, targeting children from high-end estates and middle class families constructing homes or renting space in apartments in estates such as Membly and the area around Windsor Golf Club, the Northern and eastern bypasses
These international academies plan to attract children from the high-end estates such as Mushroom and the area around Starehe Girls High School.
The upcoming Tatu City, a 2,000-hectare, mixed-use development expected to have more than 150, 000 residents and tens of thousands of day visitors, is a key attraction.
In addition to Kamiti Corner and Mugumo estates coming up, others include a a 30-acre high-end gated community apartments dubbed Lifestyle Heights, which once complete will have 1, 200 units.
Another upcoming housing project is a 100-acre gated community project dubbed River Run estate, being constructed Cytonn Real Estate. It will comprise 600 standalone three and four-bedroom units.
Real estate firm Optiven Group has also announced plans to build 400 luxury housing units dubbed Amani Ridge on a 100-acre parcel of land in the area at a cost of Sh8 billion. Individuals are also putting up luxury homes.
PD/JAMES GITAKA
There is, therefore, rising demand for quality schooling from local wealthy families, middle class and expatriates working for multinationals, foreign governments and global institutions, which players in the education sectors are keen to cashing on.
State-of-the-art
Elite institutions that have settled in the area include Crawford International School and Pioneer Schools, both located along the Kiambu-Ruiru Road and Woodcreek Schools, located along the Kiambu-Kahawa West road. Sabis International, partly owned by Centum Investment Plc, is located off Kiambu road.
Crawford opened in January 2018 and has capacity for 1,700 students. The school, which offers the Cambridge syllabus, is part of South Africa’s JSE-listed Advtech Group, Africa’s largest private education provider.
The state-of-the-art facility was designed by Boogertman+ Partners Architects and developed in conjunction with Rendeavour, Africa’s leading urban developer and owner of Tatu City.
The school’s managing director Ms Jenny Coetzee said: “Our decision to come to Kenya is informed by the insatiable demand from parents and students for international, yet locally relevant education systems”.
Fees here range from Sh137,000 and Sh147,000 for kindergarten pupils and between Sh170,000 and Sh475,000 for primary school learners per term.
The institutions are also giving the area a major face-lift, with the investors competing to provide serene and secure learning environment with modern infrastructure and sophisticated equipment, as they seek to compete.
For instance, Woodcreek Schools, which opened in January 2018 —offering International General Certificate of Secondary Education (IGCSE) curriculum is examined by International Examinations Board, sits on 30 acres.
With maximum capacity classes of 15 pupils, the school already has fully operational kindergarten. It has a fully operational primary school and high school units up to A-levels.
According to the academies director Peter Karoki, what matters in elite schools are infrastructure, facilities, human resource and environment.
“It’s difficult to provide such in the high-end areas such as Westlands because you need adequate space which is no longer available. Peri-urban area also provides quite and serene environment conducive for learners,” he said.
Deputy headteacher Daniel Muthee says they are in the process of putting up an amphitheatre tailored towards nurturing art talents among the students, a library complex, science complex to cater for science subjects, innovation centre as well as boarding facility.
Fees per term per learners range from Sh93, 000 to Sh105, 000 for the kindergarten and between Sh160, 000 and Sh315, 000 for primary school learners.
Most expensive in Africa
Nova Pioneer Education Group, a Pan-African independent school network offering pre-school to secondary education for students aged three through 19, opened a primary school in the area in 2016 and a secondary school last year.
Co-founded by former Alliance Principal Chris Khaemba, Nova occupies 20 acres along the Kiambu-Ruiru Road and opened a Sh1.6 billion campus near Eldoret town in December.
“We prepare the next generation of leaders and innovators through world-class teaching methods with an emphasis on 21st century skills,” says the institutions management.
The growth of academies offering international curriculum is riding on the back of a rising local demand for foreign curricular yet established academies continue to charge exorbitant fees, an international report shows.
The International Schools Database released late last year ranked Nairobi the most expensive city in Africa for elite schools, with fees hitting a Sh2.89 million ($28,479) high per year
Out of the six African cities surveyed, Nairobi had the highest average and the most expensive fees charged. “This isn’t entirely surprising, since there is a high demand for international education in Kenya,” says the report.
The trend indicates Kenyan parents are embracing international education to give their children a better chance at upward mobility and set them up for admissions to top universities abroad. International schools in Cairo, Egypt’s capital, charged a maximum fee at $24 850 (Sh2.6 million), ranking it second after Nairobi.
The most expensive schools worldwide can be found in Asia, particularly in China. Overall, Cape Town offers the cheapest median prices for international schools in Africa.
Uganda’s capital Kampala is home to the least expensive price worldwide, at just $523 (Sh54,000) per year. No wonder Ugandan schools and colleges are popular with many Kenyan families.
