The Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) examinations began on Monday, November 2, with 1,048,355 candidates expected to sit the examinations.

Education Cabinet Secretary Julius Ogamba during a past event/FILE

The administration of the 2026 national examinations and assessments has been largely seamless, Education Cabinet Secretary Julius Ogamba has said.

Ogamba said the exercise, which began on October 19, had proceeded smoothly, with the Kenya Primary School Education Assessment (KPSEA) concluding on October 28 and the Kenya Junior School Education Assessment (KJSEA) ending on October 30.

The CS said the first two weeks of the KCSE examination period had been dedicated to elective subjects with smaller candidature, including foreign languages, music and technical subjects.

“The administration of this year's national examinations and assessments commenced on Monday, 19th October, 2026. Since then, we have had a largely seamless exercise,” Ogamba said in a statement.

He said the government was ready to address any challenges that could emerge during the examination period.

He cited the relocation of two examination centres in Moyale Sub-County, Marsabit County, earlier on Monday following insecurity caused by clan clashes along the Kenya-Ethiopia border.

Ogamba said special arrangements had also been made to enable seven hospitalised candidates and five candidates in correctional facilities to sit the examinations.

The CS commended candidates, contracted examination professionals and members of the public for supporting the exercise, urging continued cooperation to safeguard the integrity of the national examinations.

He called on the public to report suspected cases of examination fraud and malpractice through the Kenya National Examinations Council (KNEC) toll-free lines 0800721410 and 0800724900.

“Let us work together to ensure that the results of the examinations and assessments reflect the honest work of our learners,” he said.

Ogamba wished all candidates success as they undertake the examinations.

As KCSE examinations run from November 2 to 19, authorities have rolled out stringent safeguards to curb cheating across examination centres.

Under the new measures outlined by the Kenya National Examinations Council, all phones and smart watches are strictly prohibited within examination centres.

Additionally, all staff must surrender their phones before examination materials arrive.Security personnel deployment has also been intensified, with at least two police officers assigned to every examination centre.

To secure storage facilities, smart padlocks are being utilized to monitor examination storage containers remotely, triggering real-time alerts whenever the padlocks are opened or tampered with.

Handling and distribution protocols have likewise been tightened. Morning and afternoon papers are packed in colour-coded cartons, while each candidate's details are printed directly onto personalised examination papers.

Extra security features have been integrated to help trace photographed examination papers. To maintain fairness during evaluation, candidate details are removed before marking to prevent bias.