ISSUES IN THE IMPLEMENTATION OF INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIALS PROCUREMENT POLICY IN KENYAN PUBLIC PRIMARY SCHOOLS: THE CASE OF WARENG DISTRICT, UASIN-GISHU COUNTY, KENYA.

The main purpose of this study was to examine issues in the implementation of instructional materials procurement policy in Kenyan Public Primary School. The study was prompted by the recent loss of Ksh. 1.3 billion meant for text books under the Free Primary Education (FPE) programme which raises questions about the functionality of the procurement policy. The study was conducted in Wareng District of Uasin Gishu County. A descriptive survey design was adopted utilizing both quantitative and qualitative approaches. A sample size of 152 respondents comprising 38 head teachers, 76 panel heads, and 1 DQASO were drawn from 38 public primary schools to participate in the study. Purposive and stratified simple random sampling techniques were used to select the respondents. Questionnaires, interviews, and document analysis were used to collect data. Research instruments were tested for validity and reliability. Descriptive statistics were used to summarize the findings. The study revealed that, SIMSC’s lack of knowledge and skills in the procurement process and that un-procedural procurement practices adopted by schools compromised the implementation of the procurement process. Finally, the study established that, the level of compliance to the procurement process is still low and majority of schools still flawed procurement rules. The study recommends that proper monitoring and evaluation mechanisms on procurement be put in place to ensure proper implementation of the policy.