Uhuru's move on varsities commendable, we must focus on quality education

The decision by President Uhuru Kenyatta to suspend the establishment of more universities is commendable. It might have come late but it's what the country needs. For a long time now, our education system has focused on quantity. This has been to the detriment of the much-needed quality.  

Public universities must begin to focus on strengthening their capacity to deliver high quality learning. The job market has been complaining about the inability of most graduates to deliver on the assigned tasks. Some people have been quick to blame such graduates for a problem not of their own making.

There is little students can do when an institution fails to care about what they go through. In most cases, they have genuine grievances. They resort to protests, which, in the end, do not bring any significant change. But does our society care to listen? We only wait until they have destroyed property to spark a deluge of condemnation. Universities must learn to resolve issues and act in a way that aims at nothing but ensuring high quality education.

Like on any issue affecting the public, the government has a key role to play if our public universities have to change. It must rein in managements to stop them from turning our institutions of high learning into theatres of the absurd. A spot-check on most universities reveals a disturbing trend. Many students are admitted. With this comes rising demand for more facilities. But rarely do we see universities keep abreast with the rising demand.

Lecture halls that were designed for 45 students are having 300 more. Lecturers get it difficult to be in charge of lessons. Universities have become conveyor belts that connect high schools to the job market. Does management care about whether students are properly trained to meet specific industry expectation?

Public universities have become places for minting money. Kenyans must no longer turn a blind eye to this mockery. The idea of having self-sponsored students was noble. Unfortunately, it is becoming the elephant in the room, most probably because there is no regulation about it. Institutions are scrambling to have as many Privately Sponsored Students Programme (PSSP) students as they can.

It’s no longer about giving access to education. This programme is now big business. No wonder “campus upstairs” has become a common phenomenon. Universities create ‘outlets’ everywhere; next to pubs, in malls, in church buildings, name it! To add salt to injury, they crave to have middle-level colleges turned into satellite campuses. They don’t want to know that their actions kill key institutions that are of tremendous academic benefit to another group of young Kenyans.

It’s not bad to have many people gain university education. But why kill such colleges? Another directive should stop opening of new campuses too, until the existing ones are fully equipped.

Questions also abound about the money generated by universities. On average, most PSSP students pay Sh150,000. A university with 10,000 PSSP students generates Sh1.5 billion in a year. Some have as high as 50,000 PSSP students. They generate revenues that surpass the budgets of most counties. But what do they do with the money?

Despite the huge revenues, most of them remain ill equipped. As they continue to admit many PSSP students, they must be held to account. They must tell Kenyans how they use the money. I hope Education CS Fred Matiang’i has plans for this. The lack of transparency in most public universities must be reversed.

If we are to care about the quality of our education, we must care about the welfare of the academic staff too. Lecturers do all they can but are constrained by many factors. A common phrase in Kenya today is “Why be a professor when you can fake certificates, be a politician and earn better?” The statement might appear innocuous. However, it carries a negative connotation that may destroy future generations, especially with regard to the up-and-coming professionals. Kenya must start rewarding academic achievements, as it used to. This is the only way to enable young people to appreciate the value of education.

Better remuneration for the teaching staff will go a long way in bettering quality. We must motivate lecturers. Only when they are in their best frames of mind can they do a sterling job. They don’t have to work in congested halls where they can’t even move about.

As we have seen, some opt out for greener pastures. Many go into politics, Kenya’s main path to becoming rich overnight. This endangers our learning institutions and research potential. If it’s not resolved, the country will continue to witness high staff attrition rates. That will undermine the country’s ability to develop its human capital, which is needed for economic, social, and political transformation.