The Teachers Service Commission (TSC) is finalising revisions to its Career Progression Guidelines that would create distinct pathways for teachers who have remained in the same job groups for years, allowing advancement without taking on headship or other administrative roles.

Commissioner Antonina Lentoijoni said the review aims to address uneven promotion opportunities across counties and make career progression fairer and more predictable for educators.

The proposal was outlined during a teachers’ sports fun day at Moi Forces Academy in Nairobi, an event held ahead of World Teachers’ Day that gathered teachers, education officials and union representatives.

TSC data shows more than 415,000 teachers were directly employed by the commission as of 30 June, highlighting the scale of the workforce that would be affected by the new guidelines.

Lentoijoni noted that over 220,000 teachers have already undergone re‑tooling programmes to strengthen capacity for the Competency‑Based Education system.

The commission has recently promoted 128,462 teachers through competitive interviews and is continuing interviews to fill 34,016 vacancies across various job groups.

In the current financial year, TSC has been allocated Sh4.9 billion to recruit 20,000 intern teachers, and the process of converting intern teachers to permanent, pensionable terms has begun.

The commission’s budget has risen from roughly Sh290 billion in 2022 to Sh424 billion for the 2025/26 fiscal year, reflecting growing demands on the teaching service.