President William Ruto during the installation of Chancellor William Chitunga/SCREENGRABPresident William Ruto has expressed confidence that tertiary institutions previously grappling with debt are now on a path to recovery.
Speaking on Wednesday during the installation of the newly appointed Co-operative University of Kenya Chancellor William Chitunga in Karen, Nairobi, Ruto said the government is implementing measures to eliminate financial hurdles and help universities escape the debt trap.
He affirmed the administration’s commitment to restoring stability and sustainability in the higher education sector.
"Today I can proudly say the universities that were struggling two years ago with debts, with 23 of them had already been declared bankrupt, are now on an upward mobility and I am informed that in the next two to three maybe four years, all the universities will be out of the debt trap," Ruto stated.
The President revealed that the presidential taskforce he commissioned to chart a roadmap for the education sector had engaged extensively with stakeholders, receiving over 32,000 submissions.
He further disclosed that he had sought an update from the Vice-Chancellor regarding the implementation of recommendations by the previously established task force.
According to Ruto, the Vice-Chancellor reported significant progress, noting that all university workers had been paid, taxes had been settled, and there were no outstanding debts with suppliers.
However, a minor issue had been flagged where some of the students had raised concerns about being assigned to incorrect funding bands.
"I told him (the Vice Chancellor) because they (taskforce) had a retreat and soon they will be giving me feedback on the good, the difficult, what needs to be changed because if we get our education and training right, we are well on course to getting our prosperity and development right," he said.
He further shared some of the milestones that were witnessed in the education sector, including the implementation of the Competency Based Curriculum (CBC) program, hiring more teachers, provision of more resources to the universities, and implementing a student-centred funding model.
