State commits billions across sectors, but no deal for lecturers

UASU leaders, led by Secretary-General Constantine Wasonga, address journalists at their Nairobi offices on October 12, 2026. [Nicholas Biwott, Standard]

Students in Public universities are once again paying the price for a government that has failed to secure a lasting deal with lecturers and other university workers, despite having promised to resolve the dispute after a devastating 49-day strike last year.

The strike, which began on October 2, entered its second week yesterday after negotiations between the Government and university unions collapsed, with the unions rejecting the latest offer as inadequate. The absence of the National Treasury from the talks raised further questions about the Government’s commitment to resolving a dispute whose financial implications should be central to the negotiations.

University lecturers are questioning why the Government can announce billions of shillings for farmers, teachers, counties, and infrastructure projects but has failed to secure an acceptable salary deal for university workers.

The questions have intensified following President William Ruto’s recent spending commitments, including a Sh1.2 billion sugarcane farmers’ bonus announced on October 11, a Sh10 billion programme to modernise tea factories, and a plan to promote 50,000 teachers.

The President has also announced plans to recruit 120,000 teachers by December, convert 20,000 contract teachers to permanent and pensionable terms, and increase opportunities for career progression in the basic education sector.

The commitments span different sectors and funding arrangements, but they have sharpened the contrast with the Government’s handling of the university dispute, where negotiations over the 2025–2029 collective bargaining agreement (CBA) have collapsed without a settlement.

The strike, which began on October 2, has paralysed teaching and learning in public universities, leaving hundreds of thousands of students exposed to disrupted academic calendars, postponed examinations, and delayed graduation.

Public universities enrolled 661,832 students in the 2025/2026 financial year, exceeding the projected 654,987, according to Controller of Budget figures reported on October 11. Of these, 198,567 were government-sponsored students, against a target of 154,789.

The figures illustrate the scale of the disruption in a sector already struggling with inadequate funding, staff shortages, and mounting financial obligations.

UASU Secretary General Constantine Wasonga. [Nicholas Biwott, Standard]

UASU Secretary General Constantine Wasonga said the Government had the resources to finance other programmes but had failed to table an acceptable offer for university workers.

“The Government can afford money for other programmes, but none for universities,” Wasonga said, questioning why the lecturers’ demands remained unresolved despite the Government’s spending commitments elsewhere.

The unions’ frustration has also been heightened by the Government’s announcement of a 12 per cent salary increase for lower-paid workers during Labour Day celebrations on May 1, 2026. KUDHEIHA secretary-general Thomas Mboya argued that asking university workers to accept a three per cent adjustment over four years was unfair given the rising cost of living.

“Telling university workers to take three per cent to run for four years is an insult; we are not going to take that,” he said, urging members to remain united until the unions issued further instructions.

The latest breakdown followed a meeting between the unions and the Government’s Inter-Ministerial Committee on Monday, October 12. The National Treasury, which the unions consider central to resolving the funding questions, had been invited but did not attend.

“The counter-offer was woefully inadequate and does not provide a credible basis for resolving the dispute and therefore the three unions rejected it in total,” Wasonga said.

He warned that the strike would continue and could be escalated until the Government presented a credible proposal and concluded the 2025–2029 CBA.

The impasse comes despite the Government’s experience with another devastating university strike last year, which lasted 49 days before lecturers and university staff called off their industrial action on November 5, 2025.

That strike ended after the Government and unions agreed on a return-to-work formula that included a plan to settle Sh7.9 billion in salary arrears under the 2017–2021 CBA and conclude negotiations for the 2025–2029 agreement within 30 days.

The commitment offered a route out of the crisis, but the failure to conclude the new agreement has brought the sector back to a nationwide shutdown less than a year later.

The recurring disputes raise questions about the Government’s ability to honour negotiated commitments, anticipate funding requirements, and prevent repeated interruptions to university education.

The continued industrial action has paralysed academic activities in public universities, raising concerns about delayed graduations, interrupted examinations, and disrupted academic calendars.

The students enrolled in public universities now face uncertainty over when normal learning will resume. Those living away from home continue to incur accommodation, food, transport, and upkeep expenses even when they cannot attend lectures.

The disruption is also placing additional financial pressure on families who must maintain these expenses without knowing when their children will return to class. Students nearing graduation risk delayed entry into the labour market, while universities face the challenge of reorganising examinations and academic calendars once the strike ends.

The unions maintain that lecturers will not return to work until the 2025–2029 CBA is negotiated, signed, and implemented.

Wasonga rejected the proposed Sh9.76 billion allocation for the four-year agreement, arguing that it was insufficient compared with the resources required under the previous CBA.

“When we negotiated the 2021–2025 CBA, for two years we consumed Sh9.7 billion, so we cannot imagine a CBA for four years can also consume Sh9.7 billion,” he said.

UASU is demanding salary adjustments based on objective financial indicators, including inflation, the cost of living, and changes in workers’ purchasing power.

The union has also called for firm Government commitments on staff recruitment, promotions, harmonisation of allowances, car loans, mortgages, and the funding of public university salaries.

UASU Chairperson Grace Nyongesa said the unions had expected negotiations to be concluded promptly after being invited to the table last week, allowing students to return to class.

“We are tired of arrears because the value of money when it comes would have eroded,” Nyongesa said, raising concerns about delayed payments, pension schemes, and remittances that affect workers’ ability to access bank loans.

KUSU Secretary General Charles Mukhwaya similarly urged the Government to return to the negotiating table with specific salary percentages and tangible proposals on housing and medical allowances.

He said a proposed adjustment of about three per cent would not adequately cushion workers against inflation and rising living costs.

The impasse comes despite President William Ruto’s assurance last week that the Government was working to address lecturers’ grievances.

Speaking during World Teachers’ Day celebrations at Kasarani Stadium on October 5, Ruto said the Government was engaging the unions to identify and resolve the problems behind the strike.

“We are trying to change things. Even if there are threats to protest, we are looking for where the problem is,” the President said.

At the same event, he announced plans to promote 50,000 teachers, highlighting the Government’s commitment to addressing career stagnation in the basic education sector. He also said the Government would have recruited 120,000 teachers by December and convert 20,000 contract teachers to permanent and pensionable terms.

The President’s announcements were accompanied by commitments on classroom construction and a reported Sh784.5 billion education budget for the 2026/2027 financial year. The Government has also announced a new legislative framework intended to expand financial support for students entering universities and technical institutions.

But the expansion of access and improvements in basic education do not resolve the immediate financing crisis in public universities, where lecturers are demanding a credible salary offer and firm commitments on their working conditions.

Education Cabinet Secretary Julius Ogamba has maintained that the Government cleared arrears under the 2017–2021 and 2021–2025 CBAs, urging lecturers to obey court orders and return to work.

“As we speak today, all arrears under the 2017–2021 and 2021–2025 CBAs have been fully cleared,” Ogamba said, adding that the Government remained committed to timely negotiations and the conclusion of the current agreement.

However, the unions insist that clearing previous arrears does not resolve their outstanding demands under the new CBA.

The Government must now explain why the previous return-to-work formula failed to deliver a lasting settlement, what financial commitment it is prepared to make, and why the Treasury was absent from the latest negotiations.

Until then, university workers remain locked in a pay dispute, students are left in limbo, and the Government faces mounting questions over why it can announce spending commitments across the economy but has yet to secure a durable settlement for public higher education.