Kenya begins Grade 6 and Grade 9 national assessments with 2,586,491 candidates registered

Kenya's national assessments for Grade 6 and Grade 9 began on Monday 26 October, with 2,586,491 candidates registered, according to Kenya National Examinations Council (KNEC) figures reported by The Star and The Standard. The first papers start at 8.30am.

The total is made up of 1,380,463 candidates registered for the Kenya Primary School Education Assessment (KPSEA), taken in Grade 6 as pupils complete primary school, and 1,206,028 for the Kenya Junior School Education Assessment (KJSEA), taken in Grade 9 at the end of junior school. Last year's figures were 1,298,089 candidates for KPSEA and 1,130,669 for the first KJSEA. KJSEA results will contribute to decisions on learners' progression to senior school.

KNEC's timetables set KPSEA over three days, 26 to 28 October, and KJSEA over five days, 26 to 30 October. Rehearsals were held on Friday 23 October. The papers, by day:

Source: KNEC 2026 KPSEA and KJSEA timetables.

KNEC announced this year's figures at the launch of the 2026 National Examination and Assessment Season on 6 October, when it put the total across all examinations and assessments, including the Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE), at 3,634,846 candidates.

KNEC Chief Executive Officer David Njengere set out the rules in a statement on 25 October. Mobile phones are banned from examination and assessment centres for candidates and officials alike; they must be switched off and kept in lockable lockers outside the rooms. Candidates caught cheating risk having their results cancelled. "There is absolutely no need to cheat, as this may lead to serious consequences," Njengere said.

Candidates must be seated 15 minutes before a paper starts, after being searched outside the room. A late candidate must give the supervisor a satisfactory reason, and a paper is given to someone more than half an hour late only in exceptional circumstances. The Star reported that each candidate must bring a KNEC index or assessment card.

KPSEA candidates shade answer sheets with a pencil and may not use fountain or biro pens. KJSEA candidates write in black or blue ink with a fountain or ballpoint pen, not an erasable pen, and use a pencil only for diagrams and for shading multiple-choice answer sheets. KNEC requires centre managers, supervisors and invigilators to ensure candidates sit the papers in strict compliance with the rules.

Njengere also said the results of KPSEA and KJSEA combine school-based assessment scores with scores from the summative assessment, and that the assessments are meant to guide learners' pathways, not only to pass or fail them.

Some teachers appointed as examination personnel found their names missing from KNEC's CP2 portal, the Kenyan education news site Education News reported on 25 October. The omissions came to light during the rehearsal on Friday 23 October, and some examination personnel could not open their appointment letters or complete identification requirements. The teachers were advised to contact their Sub-County Directors of Education to resolve the discrepancies before 26 October.

KNEC said preparations were complete, and security officials described the situation as calm. Education Cabinet Secretary Julius Ogamba had warned on 6 October that heavy rains could disrupt examinations and said contingency measures had been activated.

KCSE written papers run from 2 to 20 November. Njengere said this year's KCSE is the second-last under the 8-4-4 system.