State bows to pressure on varsity funding model as students call off strike

Education Cabinet Secretary, Julius Ogamba has now constituted two working committees to look into issues raised over the higher education funding model.

The CS made the remarks Sunday as he urged university student leaders to call off demonstrations set for today to allow room for an open consultative process.

This came as student leaders from various universities separately announced that they have suspended the planned strike and issued a 30-day ultimatum for the Government to address issues they have raised failure to which they will call a protest.

Ogamba said calling off the strike will allow the student community the chance to contribute effectively to higher education issues, while also progressing with their studies without disruption. 

“For greater efficiency and to achieve meaningful student participation and involvement, the Ministry is constituting two time- bound Working Committees that will draw membership from the student leadership, in addition to experts and other relevant stakeholders,” the CS said, in a statement.

The CS said that the working committees will review the status of implementation of the new funding model and make recommendations for improvement.

The specific terms of reference for the working committees, which will be published within this week after due input from the student leadership, will cover appraisal of the implementation of the funding model for higher education.

The committees will also evaluate the effectiveness of the Means Testing Instrument (MTI) in ensuring that categorization of students captures their socio-economic realities and assessing efficacy of the appeals mechanism in achieving correct student categorization for funding.

It will analyse cost of programmes in the universities and review of the structure of student loans, the attendant interest rates and the period of payment. 

Ogamba insisted that since the funding model was launched in May last year, the Ministry has been keen to engage all stakeholders, in realization that such engagement is necessary for the continuous enhancement of the model, to attain its defining elements.

He said the Ministry has held a number of open forums with students and other stakeholders, on the basis of which several improvements have been made to the model. 

“One of the salient outcomes of the various forums has been the call to integrate students even more in the decision-making process. This call has been at the heart of recent student concerns, culminating in the announcement demonstrations planned for September 9,” the CS added.

The students, led by University of Nairobi Student Association Secretary General, Ramesh Saxena said that they have called off the protest to give Government time to address their concerns, including scrapping off bands 4 and 5 under the funding model.

The students also said that they were privy to intelligence reports indicating infiltration of hired goons in their protests and considered suspending it, unless there is no other option left.

“Our call for calm on Monday comes from a point of concern for the businesses in the city, security of our students and to give government one more chance. We have had engagements and commitments especially from Ministry that they will, moving forward, engage the students in looking at the appeal processes and re-adjust the funding model so that it gives education to the people and brings back the sanity in our institutions,” Saxena said.

He added: “We give the Ministry and Government a maximum of 30 days, if we shall not see any action we shall have no other option than come back to the streets because if that is the language that they understand we shall show them the voice of comrades.”

A student leader at Kenyatta University, Zaddock Okoth said they are in support of the new approach by Government to facilitate and call for dialogue but decried the unilateral approach it has adopted as opposed to bilateral.

“The government has been making attempts to explain the funding model to a number of university leaders at the expense of getting proposals from them. Due to purported infiltration of goons, we have considered demonstration is not the best route now unless we have no other option left. We see light at the end of the tunnel and we would want to give one more chance and called it off over insecurity perspective,” Okoth explained.

He said there has been anxiety over the funding and categorization into bands, with a majority wrongly banded and unable to raise household contributions.

Okoth stated that they appreciate efforts by the Ministry to implement new model believed to be a solution to the high cost of education.

Although not as satisfactory as they would want, Okoth stated that the latest proposal by the Government to form an all-inclusive committee to look into the ongoing appeals, evaluation of the model and come up with a remedy is worth an applause.

“However much we have goodwill, implementation has not been achievable because of lack of data on household capacity. We urge this goodwill is expedited so that short term remedies can be considered while a commitment is put for long term resolution to this problem,” Okoth stated.

The students are also seeking a reduction in the bands to only three bands, with Saxena saying Kenya is not a nation of the affluent and cannot claim to have rich households.

Saxena also said the university students want an adjustment into the ratio of scholarship to loans, explaining that they do not want to see a student burdened by loans after their year of study.

“We need an extension of loan repayment grace period. Our nation is one that grapples with the struggle of unemployment and it is very unfair of the nation to ask their sons who are not employed to pay back without jobs and salaries,” said Saxena.

They also want optimization of MTI so that students are not placed in bands that they do not exist in.

“We want to see that a vulnerable student is placed in Band 1 where they belong. A student that has capacity to pay should be placed in band three. Band 4 and five should be done away with totally,” he insisted.

The students have similarly called for a reduction in interest rates accrued on loans, reduction of exorbitant cost of hostel accommodation as well as review of the strict fee deadlines so that it can be spread in the course of the semester.

Other universities represented included Chuka, Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology and KCA University among others.

igithinji@standardmedia.co.ke