400,000 students in poorly-run universities face uncertainty

400,000 students in poorly-run universities face uncertainty

What you need to know:

• Ogamba blamed the failures on political patronage and ethnic factors during the appointment process.
• The CS stated that appointees to councils will now be subject to security background checks.

More than 400,000 students, or 60 percent of the overall enrollment in public universities, are attending poorly managed institutions, a parliamentary committee was informed.

Education Cabinet Secretary Migos Ogamba informed the National Assembly’s Public Investments Committee on Governance and Education that 21 out of the 43 universities in Kenya are underperforming regarding their management.

He attributed the underperformance to political patronage and ethnic factors involved in the selection of Vice Chancellors and Council Members in institutions of higher learning.

Mr. Ogamba conveyed to the National Assembly’s Public Investments Committee on Governance and Education, chaired by Bumula MP Wanami Wamboka, that 20 universities are performing well while 21 are underperforming due to governance challenges and political patronage.

“The 21 non-performing universities have over 60 percent or 400,000 of the total 800,000 enrolled students,” Mr. Ogamba stated.

“If we were to eliminate these 21 universities as suggested by the member for Imenti Central (Moses Kirima), what would we do with the students in those universities? ” Mr. Ogamba inquired.

Mr. Kirima had called for the closure of loss-making universities and the redistribution of the students to better performing institutions.

Mr. Ogamba informed the committee led by Mr. Wamboka on Friday, April 25, 2025, that the Ministry has begun to ensure that those applying for council appointments will now undergo security background checks by relevant authorities to verify their qualifications.

Mr. Ogamba mentioned that the Ministry is assessing the qualifications of all University Councils to ensure that all members are capable of managing the higher education facilities.

“Out of the 43 Universities, 21 are facing difficulties. We have not appointed Council Members for several universities because we want to confirm their qualifications. We are currently conducting background checks on candidates for council memberships. ”

“University Council members must have their backgrounds checked prior to their hiring. We are examining six councils right now. It is crucial for the committee to understand that 21 out of the 43 university councils are experiencing issues. ”

Mr. Ogamba appeared before the committee to address various issues related to the audit of public universities and the Technical Vocational Education Training (TVET) regarding the failure to remit statutory deductions, functioning without Governing Councils, stalled projects, the rejection of Vice Chancellors upon their return from leave, as well as ethnic and gender balance in staffing and appointments, along with officers in acting roles for over six months.

Auditor General Nancy Gathungu had criticized several universities for operating without Governing Councils and for lacking ethnic and gender balance in their staffing and appointment practices.

The Cabinet Secretary informed MPs that the slow pace of appointing vice chancellors and councils is due to the need to ensure that qualified individuals are chosen for the vacant roles.
“The challenges within our institutions of higher education have been brought about by political favoritism or governance problems. We are currently taking the time to conduct background checks to identify those who operate our institutions of higher education,” Mr. Ogamba stated.

“In the selection of university councils and boards of TVET institutions, we aim to comply with the requirements of the Constitution regarding fairness, regional and gender balance, merit, and competition,” Mr. Ogamba informed MPs that the councils and boards serve essential oversight functions in managing institutions tasked with policy development, strategic direction, financial oversight, and institutional accountability.

“It is thus crucial to select the appropriate individuals, with the right mix of skills and in a manner that adheres to the law,” Mr. Ogamba remarked. “At present, most of our university councils are entirely constituted. Only six public universities have openings ranging from two to three members. The remaining are fully constituted or missing just one member,” he added.

“The openings have not yet been filled due to the recruitment process we are undertaking to ensure the appropriate skills mix, gender, and ethnic balance. We will address these vacancies once the ongoing recruitment process is concluded. ”

He mentioned that once the Public Service Commission (PSC) finishes the recruitment processes, it will be forwarded to the university councils, which will then consult with the Cabinet Secretary before appointments are finalized.

Mr. Ogamba indicated that crucial consultations, in addition to merit, encompass gender and regional balance to ensure that senior management appointments represent the diversity of Kenya and promote gender inclusivity.