Nairobi — The Commission on Administrative Justice has raised concerns over what it terms as excessive charges imposed on students and parents seeking access to senior secondary school placement results.

In a letter addressed to State Department for Basic Education Principal Secretary Julius Bitok, the Commission criticised the Sh30 fee charged to access placement results via SMS, describing it as unaffordable for many families and a barrier to candidates transitioning to Grade 10.

The Ombudsman urged the State Department to spearhead negotiations with mobile service providers to lower the cost of accessing the results.

It also noted that although an online portal exists as an alternative channel, the Ministry of Education had not provided adequate information to parents and students on how to use it and avoid additional SMS charges.

The Commission further called on the State Department to develop mechanisms to ensure easier access to placement results and to publicly outline policy and administrative measures taken to make the process affordable and transparent, including conducting awareness campaigns on all available access channels.