Kenyan MP commits to act for learning based on new evidence

IPNEd member, Hon. Abdul Haro MP, is a guest of honour at the PAL Network’s Evidence for Action Forum in Kenya.

• Hon. Abdul Haro, Member of the National Assembly of Kenya, delivered a speech at the PAL Network’s Evidence for Action Forum in Nairobi, Kenya on 25 November, 2025.

• Hon. Haro highlighted the critical role of citizen-led assessments to complement national government data, his commitment to ensuring data is used for accountability and decision-making, and the role of parliament to ensure all children are learning.

Firstly, I wish to welcome you all to the PAL Evidence for Action Forum and for those of you who travelled from outside Kenya - karibu Kenya, karibu Nairobi.

It is very heartwarming to see so many participants here, united by our commitment to ensuring all children learn to read, write and do basic mathematics by the end of primary school.

Learning these foundational skills is the bedrock for all learning. 

When children acquire the basics in primary school, they are more likely to stay in school and go on to higher education, more likely to earn more when they enter the workforce, and become active and engaged citizens. 

Developing our people, our human capital, helps drive national, continental and global progress. With Africa home to the world's largest youth population, this is critical.

Our people are our greatest asset, and we must invest in them, building their knowledge, skills and values. 

Everyone agrees with this, but despite that, too many children aren’t learning the basics in school, risking their futures and our collective progress. 

7 out of 10 children in low and middle-income countries globally are unable to read and comprehend a simple text by age 10, and even now, more than 250 million children are still out of school. 

In Africa, that’s one in 5 children of primary school age not in school, and 9 out of 10 children not acquiring sufficient reading or writing skills by age 10. 

The good news is that political leaders are committing to action to reverse these numbers.

But we need to deepen and widen that commitment, ensuring that political representatives at every level, in every ministry and from every party understand the importance of this mission and are committed to prioritising it, so we deliver on our promise, that every child is in school and learning the basics.

As a member of the National Assembly’s Committee on Education here in Kenya, it is my job to acknowledge this challenge and help mobilise the people, resources and funding to tackle it. 

But my acknowledgement of the issue is not enough. Broader support for improved learning from different community members is also an important piece of the puzzle. 

Without wider societal support, strong commitment from political leaders is not enough, both immediately and especially over the longer term, to sustain changes.

Mobilising communities and citizens to both uphold political commitments and demand further action is critical to ensure all children really are learning the basics. 

That’s why the work of the PAL Network and its new report, the International Common Assessment of Numeracy and Reading (ICAN-ICAR) report, measuring learning levels of almost 90,000 children across 12 countries, is so significant.

It is why we are gathered here today. Ensuring every child learns is our collective agenda, which is vital to driving progress. 

We also come to celebrate the 25-year south-south partnership of PAL Network members from 17 countries across four continents, which serves as an example of what happens when we mobilise behind a common goal.

Whilst many national assessments do help to set targets and identify where resources and funding need to be allocated, citizen-led assessments are a critical tool that can help drive further accountability and action, and give the government an understanding of learning that national assessments don’t capture.

The data from the ICAN-ICAR report is an essential part of this picture. 

I welcome this new evidence to both inform my own work here in Kenya to drive up learning outcomes, but also globally for my peers, for governments and for the many dedicated partners and experts here today. 

Having access to the latest evidence helps us to shape the direction and quality of our national education system and its policies.

But my challenge to all of you is that the evidence isn’t as widely known about, understood or acted upon as it should.

A recent survey found that 80% of government officials overestimate literacy proficiency in their countries while underestimating the detrimental impact that low literacy has on national development.

For the most part, we rightly assume that children who are in school will be learning, especially the basics.

But they largely aren’t, and we need to know this, acknowledge it and act on it.

In parliament, we need to use the data from the assessment to ask questions, challenge gaps and ensure that policy, programmes, laws and funding, all of which we shape, all translate into tangible improvements in children’s learning.

As legislators, we create and amend the laws that protect the right to education and set standards for learning. As budget holders, we approve how public resources are allocated, directing funding to the schools and communities that need it most.

Oversight is another critical function. Through committees and inquiries, parliament holds the government accountable for delivering on its commitments and monitors whether resources are reaching classrooms and producing results.

Data on learning should be our guide and should inform how we perform all of these functions, with the singular mission to ensure every child learns.

But data isn’t an end in itself; it needs to shape our priorities and inform our priorities and be the measure by which we judge whether we have done enough.

You need to make the data accessible and understandable, and as the centre of a collective mission.

It also needs to help us set targets we hold ourselves accountable for.

In short, we must press on and do everything in our power to accelerate changes that lead to every child finishing primary education with the strongest possible literacy and numeracy skills.

Thank you. 

—ENDS—