Kindergartens in Kenya where fees hit Sh1.1million!

There are many things you can do with Sh1 million, like for instance buying a head-turning, second hand, 1996 Range Rover Hse or a one-acre plot, 15 kilometres from the Konza Ranch (with pocket change for fencing).

You may also choose to acquire 10 grade cows from a Githunguri farmer at Sh100,000 each, pay for your graduate or post-graduate studies, or better still, escape a menacing landlord by putting up a two-bedroom prefab house.

But that million is not even close to enough if your kid attends kindergarten at prestigious schools like the International School of Kenya (ISK). At ISK, you will be required to part with an additional Sh800,000 for your kid to attend the toddlers’ class.

In addition, you will have to cough up another $250 (Sh21,500) as application fee. Then there is a one-time capital levy fee of $7500 (Sh645,000) and $500 (Sh 43,000) as tuition deposit. That is over Sh700, 000 nonrefundable payments!

But this is just scratching the surface really. Assuming you are starting at the bottom of the food chain, that is at the pre-kindergarten level, the annual feel will set you back by $ 11,950 (Sh1.1m), for a child who’s probably just learning to say ‘papa.’

Princely sum

If your diaper-clad offspring graduates to kindergarten, the amount is similarly elevated to a jaw-dropping $18,950 (Sh 1.6m). In Grade 1, you will be required to fork out a handsome $19,950 (Sh 1.7m) per year. Add that to an annual capital levy of $750 (Sh64,500) and an extra $1,800 (Sh154, 800) if your little one is to use the school bus.

In total, new parents at ISK will have to part with a princely sum of $20,950 (Sh1.8m) in application fees, tuition and tuition fees for pre-kindergarten and transport for the privilege of enrolling their lovely babies in the 38-year-old school that follows the North American system of education. Don’t look so surprised, after all, ISK was established to provide education for children of expatriate families in Kenya.

Boarding

At Brookhouse School, preschoolers pay Sh24,000 per day. It costs Sh450,000 per year for a two-year-old child, while boarding and tuition in senior years (ages 12 and 13) will set you back by Sh700,000. This excludes Sh18,000 per term for individual music lessons and hiring of music instruments, and another Sh37,500 for transport.

Caution money alone is Sh200,000 for boarders and Sh100,000 for day scholars. It costs about Sh9.1 million to complete primary and secondary education in this elite school in Karen, enough money to purchase a comfortable house Nairobi’s Eastlands.

The 33-year-old school caters for pupils from pre-school to A-level. It currently has 750 learners within the walls of its castle-like structure that sprawls on prime 14 acres near the Nairobi National Park.

Day scholars

It costs Sh154,700 per term for a three-year-old to study at GEMS Education. At Banda School, that figure is Sh60,500. Day scholars at Peponi benefit from a flexi-boarding program that allows them to stay overnight in the school should they wish for Sh5,000 per night, higher than half-board charges some beach hotels at the coast are currently charging. Full boarders at the school pay Sh792,000.