Peter Munga's Pioneer school loses appeal: what happens to pupils after the 31 December deadline

Kenya's Court of Appeal has ordered Pioneer International Schools, linked to businessman Peter Munga, to give up a 75-acre parcel in Thika owned by Del Monte Kenya by 31 December 2026, Business Daily reported on 9 November. The judges let the school keep operating until then so students, including those sitting exams, can move in an orderly way.

Mjengo Hub reports that the judgment is dated 6 November 2026 and upholds a July 2025 decision of the Environment and Land Court. If Pioneer does not leave by the deadline, Del Monte can enforce the eviction without a fresh court order.

What did the Court of Appeal decide in the Del Monte and Pioneer case?

The core finding is that Pioneer never became a tenant. Pioneer argued that Del Monte knew about its takeover of the school, encouraged it and watched it invest, so eviction would be unfair. The court rejected that, finding no clear assurance or conduct by Del Monte that created a property right. "Optimism, however commercially understandable, is not tenancy," the judges ruled.

The court also held that, even if the original lease was a controlled tenancy, Pioneer had not shown that it became a tenant. Per Mjengo Hub, spending money on another party's property cannot by itself create tenancy rights.

How did a school end up on Del Monte land?

According to the Business Daily account of the lease history, Del Monte leased the 75 acres to Goshen Gardens on 3 September 2013 for eight years to run a school, at an initial rent of Sh550,000 a month with 5% annual increases. The lease barred assignment without the landlord's consent.

Goshen Gardens fell into rent arrears in February 2015, and Del Monte issued a termination notice on 5 May 2015. Goshen Gardens contested it, alleging Del Monte had cut the land from 100 to 75 acres and uprooted the school's perimeter fence. In July 2015 it offered to sell the school business and assets to Munga for an extra Sh38 million, and Munga undertook to rehabilitate the school.

Del Monte's position, as set out in the same report, is that it never agreed to lease the property to Pioneer and would consider any arrangement only after Goshen Gardens surrendered possession. It first sought eviction in court in 2016. The Environment and Land Court judgment of July 2025 is published on Kenya Law.

What happens to pupils and parents now?

The court's conditions matter most to families. Pioneer must keep paying monthly occupation charges at the pre-judgment rate, and those payments do not make it a tenant. It may not sublet, assign, alter or expand the premises beyond ordinary school operations during the transition.

That means this academic year should run as normal, with the school expected to relocate before 31 December. The reports we reviewed do not say where Pioneer plans to move, and neither article reports a response from Pioneer or Munga to the ruling. Parents should look for a notice from the school itself.

Pulse will update this story when Pioneer, Del Monte or the courts say more. Until then, anything beyond the dates above is unconfirmed.