Shock as varsity workers face delayed and slashed salaries

Moi University union members including UASU, KUDHEHA and KUSA during a demonstration in Eldoret Uasin Gishu County. They were protesting over delayed salaries, getting a quarter salary every month and promotions which they claimed were given to relatives and friends. [Peter Ochieng, Standard]

Workers in public universities are facing a financial crisis as their monthly salaries are now uncertain due to troubled funding from the State.

The Standard has learned that most public universities have issued circulars to both teaching and non-teaching staff, alerting them of impending changes in salary payments. Citing reduced and delayed capitation releases, universities have informed staff that full salary payments are no longer guaranteed.

In some institutions, salaries will now be paid between 50 per cent and 65 per cent. This situation has prompted the academic staff union to call for a strike beginning in September, coinciding with the reopening of institutions for a new academic year.

“From September this year, there will be no learning in public universities. We are issuing a seven-day strike notice... there will be no university education in this country if the government doesn’t take this seriously,” said Constance Wasonga, Secretary General of the Universities Academic Staff Union (UASU).

Some communications from universities to their staff, seen by The Standard, reveal the extent of the crisis. In a memo dated August 13, Technical University of Kenya Deputy Registrar Stephen Karanja informed staff that the institution could not disburse full salaries for July 2024. As a result, some staff in Grades II-IV received only 65 per cent of their salaries.

“The reduction in funding has unfortunately created a deficit in our ability to pay the full salary amount for our staff in July 2024,” Karanja said. The university has appealed for understanding and patience from its staff during this period.

The reduction in capitation funding is a significant blow to the university, which has faced financial challenges in recent years. Consequently, the university has been forced to cut back on spending in various areas, including academic programs, research, and student support services. The reduction in salaries is also likely to further diminish staff morale, which is already under pressure from increasing financial strains.

Persistent delays

The university has not yet provided a timeline for when the balance of the salaries will be paid. The reduction in capitation funding is a national issue affecting all public universities in Kenya, and the government has faced criticism for not providing adequate support for higher education.

“The case of the Technical University of Kenya (TUK), where salaries are paid at 65 per cent, is unacceptable. We will not tolerate persistent delays in salary payments in public universities,” Wasonga said. The university community is now calling on the government to increase funding for higher education. 

“We are appealing to the government to increase funding for higher education. This is a critical issue that affects the future of our country,” Wasonga said.

At Moi University, over 3,000 employees began a go-slow on Wednesday, boycotting work in protest of frequent salary delays and workplace frustrations. Led by UASU Moi University chapter secretary Richard Okero, they have called on President Ruto to intervene.

This is not the first time universities have been burdened by underfunding. In November 2021, Egerton University announced an indefinite closure after its teaching and non-teaching staff went on strike over reduced salaries. At that time, the university was paying workers only 40 per cent of their income for three years, attributing its financial troubles to the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic and subsequent shutdowns.

The situation prompted the National Assembly to launch a probe into the financial status of universities and other institutions of higher learning. Latest data from the Ministry of Education shows that the debt in public universities currently stands at Sh75 billion.

This debt includes defaults on pension payments, gratuities, insurance premiums, and other statutory deductions, which constitute the largest portion of the debt, accumulating to Sh28.414 billion. Neglected bills to suppliers, unremitted employee deductions, and outstanding payments to part-time lecturers further exacerbate the financial woes.

Public universities owe Sh5.595 billion to unpaid suppliers, Sh3.49 billion in unremitted Sacco deductions, Sh3.369 billion to part-time lecturers, Sh2.25 billion to banks, and Sh1.152 billion for capital projects. Additional debts include Sh39.4 million owed for the Housing Levy, Sh520,000 to the Higher Education Loans Board (HELB), and Sh120,000 to the National Industrial Training Authority (NITA). Other unspecified debts total Sh6.248 billion.

In May, a document tabled before the National Assembly Committee on Education and seen by The Standard revealed that the University of Nairobi accounts for the largest share of the debt, amounting to Sh18 billion.

This is followed by the Technical University of Kenya, which owes Sh10.367 billion; Egerton University with Sh10.363 billion; Kenyatta University with Sh9.538 billion; and JKUAT with an outstanding debt of Sh8.857 billion.

The mounting debt burden has led the Ministry of Education to declare 23 universities technically insolvent, meaning that these institutions cannot pay their debts.

Higher Education Principal Secretary Beatrice Inyangala, in a presentation before the National Assembly Committee on Education, indicated the other institutions include Multimedia University, Kabianga, Kisii, Koitalel Samoei University, Cooperative University, Dedan Kimathi, Maseno, Chuka, South Eastern Kenya University, Laikipia, Embu, Maasai Mara, Moi, Masinde Muliro, Kirinyaga, Garissa universities.