Picture this. At 7pm on a weekday evening, a Grade 7 pupil sits at their home study table surrounded by books, a tablet and a pile of printed worksheets.
One assignment requires researching a local environmental issue and presenting it using pictures and charts. Another could involve a creative arts project that needs coloured paper, glue and markers. A third task must be typed, uploaded online and submitted before midnight.
As the child works through their homework, the parent is required to print documents at a nearby cyber café, load mobile data for online research, and buy stationery needed for assignments. This is just a glimpse of the life of a Competency-Based Education (CBE) parents like Raymond Musungu.
“Education expenses start building up from upper primary and shoot up in junior secondary,” he says the parent who has two learners under CBE. With his eldest child who studied under the 8-4-4 system, the expenses, he says, were manageable, with the heaviest financial burden kicking in at secondary and university levels.
“With CBE it is front-loaded pressure,” he says describing the financial differences between the two education systems.
This front-loaded pressure is pushing parents to reassess how they plan for education costs.
According to financial advisers, some parents are reconsidering the adequacy and timing of their education savings as expenses accumulate earlier than they once did.
Dennis Mworia, Britam Life Assurance general manager, says the most visible shift has been how parents structure their education savings rather than whether they save at all.Under the 8-4-4 framework, education-related pay-outs were typically spread over four years before maturity. Under CBE, costs are incurred earlier, particularly around the transition into junior secondary, prompting a need for earlier access to funds.
“The key difference is largely in the structure of pay outs, with fewer but earlier releases compared to the old system,” Dennis says.
More policies, longer planning
Junior secondary has emerged as a particularly cost-intensive phase, driven by subject-based learning, practical assessments and additional learning materials that parents must cover. As a result, families can no longer rely on savings plans that only release funds at traditional secondary school entry.
To manage this, financial advisers say some parents are spreading their education savings across different timelines to match education stages more closely, rather than relying on a single lump sum later in the child’s schooling.
While there is a perception that CBE has made education insurance more expensive, Dennis argues that rising coverage amounts are largely a response to inflation rather than changes in the education system itself.
For parents who began saving when their children were younger or when the 8-4-4 system was still dominant, inflation has reduced the real value of earlier plans.
Financial advisers increasingly recommend periodic reviews to identify gaps caused by rising costs or structural changes in the education system. These reviews are particularly relevant for families considering alternative curricula, such as Cambridge, which can significantly alter funding needs.
Beyond savings structure, education planning also plays a role in household risk management. Eliud Kavogi, Eliud Kavogi, a Senior Financial Advisor at Kenindia Assurance in Nairobi, says education savings are more resilient when combined with risk protection.
Education-focused savings plans are often structured as endowment policies linked to life insurance, meaning that savings continue even when a parent is no longer able to contribute due to death, disability or serious illness.
A key feature in such arrangements is the waiver of premium. If the parent experiences a qualifying life event, future contributions are covered, allowing the education plan to continue as scheduled. This ensures that a child’s education funding does not collapse at the same time the family loses income.
Depending on policy terms, some plans also provide immediate financial support to the family while maintaining future education pay-outs. Coverage may also extend to disability and critical illness, helping families maintain education savings during periods of medical or income stress.
The best practice
Financial advisers generally agree that earlier planning provides greater flexibility. Starting education savings when children are young allows families to spread costs over a longer period, reducing pressure during high-expense years.
CBE has further reinforced the importance of aligning savings timelines with education milestones, as costs now arise earlier and more gradually rather than peaking sharply at secondary school entry.
However, balancing education planning with other financial needs remains critical. Advisers recommend that parents regularly review their overall financial position to ensure that education savings do not crowd out essentials such as medical cover, emergency funds or day-to-day living expenses.
“Carry out a comprehensive review of your current financial state and future goals. Live within your means and ensure that your earnings can cover the current needs plus be able to save for future large expenses such as higher education for all your children,” Dennis says.
