The Kenya Institute of Curriculum Development (KICD) has sounded the alarm over an emerging trade in counterfeit senior school curriculum designs, warning that criminal networks are preying on parents and teachers anxious about next month’s transition to Grade 10.
As the pioneer Competency-Based Curriculum (CBC) cohort prepares to enter senior school, demand for learning materials has surged—creating what KICD describes as an “opportunistic market” for fraudsters selling bogus curriculum documents disguised as official releases.
KICD Director-General Prof Charles Ong’ondo said growing reports of parents, school heads, and teachers being duped into buying the fake materials prompted the agency to intervene.
“We are increasingly seeing false claims and forged documents being circulated as if they were developed or approved by KICD. These materials are not only fake—they are illegal,” he said.
Prof Ong’ondo stressed that no Grade 10 curriculum designs have been released, and that the genuine versions will only be made available after the curriculum development process is complete. Any documents currently on sale, he said, are fraudulent.
The syndicates behind the fake materials have reportedly replicated KICD branding and artwork from earlier curriculum designs to make their products appear credible. Many of these counterfeits are being sold through social media accounts, book peddlers along busy streets, and online vendors using anonymous profiles.
Education stakeholders say the infiltration of fake documents has complicated KICD’s enforcement efforts. Kenya Secondary Schools Heads Association chair Willy Kuria noted that the shadowy networks behind the forgeries operate through mobile outlets that shift rapidly from town to town.
“By the time authorities track one source, the same materials reappear in a different county under a new seller. These are well-organised informal networks that are difficult to pin down,” he said.
KICD has urged the public to ignore all unofficial materials and reminded schools that the only authorised outlet for curriculum designs is the KICD Bookshop at the institute’s Nairobi headquarters. The agency has not accredited any publisher, distributor, or private vendor to supply Grade 10 materials.
Experts warn that using fake designs could have serious implications for teaching and assessment when schools reopen. Curriculum designs determine learning areas, sequencing, and teaching approaches; getting them wrong could derail early implementation of senior school pathways.
KICD says it is working closely with the Ministry of Education and investigative agencies to dismantle the networks behind the counterfeits, and to protect schools from misinformation ahead of the critical CBC transition.
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