The Ministry of Education has invited fresh bids for the construction and upgrading of school infrastructure in selected institutions in Nyamira County, signalling renewed efforts to fast-track completion of the learning facilities across the region.
Through the State Department for Basic Education, and with financial support from the Kuwait Fund for Arab Economic Development (KFAED), the government has also opened tenders for the supply and delivery of furniture and equipment to selected schools.
The initiative is part of a wider programme to modernise education infrastructure and reduce congestion in classrooms in the region.
According to the tender notice, the projects are intended to support infrastructure improvement and ensure better learning environments for students across Nyamira County.
The notice said tendering will be conducted through the open competitive national method using standardised tender documents.
The ministry has invited all qualified and interested contractors to submit their bids.
Tenderers may apply for more than one lot, but will only be awarded a single lot to ensure fair distribution of opportunities.
The bidding process comes amid growing concerns over implementation delays in the projects launched in 2024.
Local leaders have previously expressed concern and pushed for faster execution of the works, arguing that slow progress had undermined the intended benefits of the programme.
Reports had indicated that several contracts under the multi-billion-shilling initiative had been terminated after contractors failed to commence work within required timelines or due to slow progress.
They urged the ministry to reassign tenders to more capable contractors to prevent further delays.
The Kuwait-funded programme targets 68 schools and one teachers’ training college across Borabu, North Mugirango, West Mugirango and Kitutu Masaba constituencies.
Of these, 47 are secondary schools while 21 are primary schools. The project scope includes construction of 183 new classrooms, dormitories and dining halls, with an estimated budget of Sh2.7 billion.
The investments are expected to improve accommodation capacity and reduce pressure on existing facilities, particularly in high-enrolment schools.
Tenderers are required to participate in a compulsory pre-tender site visit for the construction of Lots 5, 11 and 20.
The visits will be conducted at respective school sites in Nyamira County between March 17 and 19, 2026, from 8 am to 5 pm.
The notice states that a site visit certificate will be issued on the same day, and that “failure to attend the site visit will result in automatic disqualification during evaluation.”
All bids must be quoted in Kenya Shillings and must include all applicable taxes.
“Tenders shall remain valid for 156 days (five months) from the date of opening of tenders,” the notice reads.
Each tender must also be accompanied by a tender security of Sh1,500,000 from a financial institution regulated by the Central Bank of Kenya.
A compulsory virtual pre-tender conference will be held on March 26, 2026, at 10 am, with participants accessing the meeting through a link to be provided on the ministry’s official website at a later date.
The tender notice indicated that requests for clarification must be submitted on or before April 3, 2026, two weeks before the bid submission deadline. Responses will be shared with all bidders through the ministry website.
Interested bidders may download tender documents free of charge from www.education.go.ke and forward their company and contact details to ppo@education.go.ke.
Completed tender documents must be submitted physically to the Principal Secretary, State Department for Basic Education, through the Head of Supply Chain Management Services at Jogoo House “B”, Ground Floor, Room 14, Harambee Avenue, Nairobi.
The postal address is P.O. Box 30040, Nairobi, Postal Code 00100. Electronic submissions will not be accepted and late tenders will be rejected.
