Kenyan children have more access to education than their counterparts in the East African region, according to a new report released by UNESCO on Friday.
According to the 2026 Global Education Monitoring (GEM) Report released by UNESCO, Kenya has achieved relatively strong access indicators, particularly at the primary school level, compared to countries such as Uganda and Tanzania.
Kenya scores better than its neighbours in transition rates at all levels. Whereas 15 percent of Kenyan children were recorded to be out of school at the primary school level, Tanzania is at 17 percent, while Uganda is at 14 and South Sudan is at 64.
However, the report indicates that the East African region is still grappling with significant gaps in enrolment, completion and quality of learning outcomes.
87 percent of Kenyan children complete primary school education, compared with 69 percent in Rwanda, 76 percent in Tanzania, 30 percent in Uganda, and data was not available for South Sudan.
The report paints a mixed picture of global progress in education, with gains in enrolment overshadowed by persistent inequalities across developing regions.
In the region, less than 25 percent of children of school-going age are enrolled in pre-primary education institutions, while only about two-thirds of young people complete secondary school, highlighting major gaps in both early learning and progression.
The report notes that challenges remain across parts of Africa. By 2017, two countries Niger and Uganda still had transition rates below 60 percent.
Globally, the report indicates that, progress has slowed considerably in the 15 years that followed, signaling the need for renewed policy efforts to support learners moving through the education system.
The report shows that 273 million children, adolescents and youth were out of school globally in 2024, despite decades of expansion in education systems. About half of these are in Sub-Saharan Africa.
While 1.4 billion learners were attending primary and secondary school globally in 2024, it is also estimated that 273 million were out of school, the report states.
MG/as/APA