The Kenya Institute of Curriculum Development (KICD) was established by the Government of Kenya on the 14th of January 2013 under an Act of Parliament- Act No.4 of 2013..
It also evaluates vets and approves the curricular and curriculum support materials for basic and tertiary education, as well as offering curriculum based consultancy services in basic and tertiary education and training.
‘’A skilled and ethical society’’
‘‘To provide curricula and curriculum support materials through research and engagement to nurture every learner’s potential for sustainable development”
KICD is the Successor of the Kenya Institute of Education (KIE) which was established in 1968 by Education Act, Cap 211, of the laws of Kenya, and its legal status defined in the 1976 KIE Order, issued through Legal Notice No. 105 of 1976, as provided for by the Act. Amendments to this Order are made by Legal Notice No. 144 of 1980, and Legal Notice No. 126 of 1984.
But the origin of the KIE dates as far back as 1957 when an English Special Centre (ESC) was set up in Nairobi for the purpose of coordinating and advising the Ministry of Education on the teaching of English. This was followed in, 1961, by a Science Center with an aim of promoting the standards of science teaching in the country. In 1965, a Mathematics Center was also set up to develop and implement the then new mathematics curriculum for schools. These three centers were amalgamated in January 1966 to form a Curriculum Development and Research Centre (CDRC). CDRC was also to incorporate all the other subjects.
Also evolving at that period was a center for teacher education programmes, known as the Kenya Institute of Education (KIE). KIE was established in April 1964 as a direct result of the Conference of Institutes of Education, which was held in Mombasa, Kenya, in January 1964. The then University of East Africa, in conjunction with the ministries of education of Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania, and other interested bodies, sponsored the conference. The then KIE was based at Kenyatta College (now university), and had the following functions:
CDRC served in the membership of KIE panels. In 1966 the CDRC and the Kenya Institute of Education were merged to form the current Kenya Institute of Education with its location at the then Central Teachers College, Nairobi. The Central Teachers College was relocated to the Kenya Science Teachers College, Nairobi.
Another addition KIE was the education media service, which had started in 1963 as a School Broadcasting unit of the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, and based at Mombasa House, Nairobi. In 1965, the unit was taken over by the Ministry of Education, and in July 1976 it was moved to KIE, and became the Educational Media Service (EMS) with expanded responsibilities of the production of multimedia learning resources.
Over the years, the role of the Institute has expanded to respond to emerging needs including:
The Government of Kenya established the e-Government Programme in June 2004. It has since then committed itself towards achieving an effective and operational e-Government to facilitate better and efficient delivery of information and services to the citizens, promote productivity among public servants, encourage participation of citizens in Government and empower all Kenyans.
