The financial woes facing public universities are set to persist with the Ministry of Education projecting a deficit of Ksh49 billion funding for the financial year 2023/2024.
Over the years higher learning institutions have been hit by a cash crunch blamed on underfunding by the National Treasury and a lack of adequate resources to stay afloat.
Education Cabinet Secretary (CS) Ezekiel Machogu admitted the financial challenges facing the higher education sector and directed universities to explore innovative means to generate income to make them financially viable during these lean financial times.
Staff could be staring at massive layoffs after the CS advised the institutions to embark on cost-cutting measures as well as consider leasing some properties as a remedy to the biting financial challenges.
He said the government is alive to the impacts of dwindling state funding levels on the learning institutions but asked university authorities to come up with innovative ways to raise funds.
“We are also asking universities to be innovative to generate income like commercializing research. Some have amassed properties (dead capital) that they can lease. They can also embrace public-private partnerships and also rationalizing to downsize” he advised.
Speaking when he officially opened the First Biennial Kenya Universities Funding Conference 2023 in Mombasa Machogu acknowledged that there have been challenges in the provision of capitation for students, as the increasing number of students joining universities hasn’t been commensurate with the allocated funds.
CS Machogu reported that in this financial year, the funding requirement for public universities is projected to be Ksh71,945,049,600 against an approved allocation of Ksh44,023,955,000, translating to a deficit of Ksh27,921,094,600.
For private universities, the funding requirement is at Ksh18, 448,041,600 against an approved allocation of Ksh 3,174,791,604 amounting to Ksh15, 273,249,996 deficit.
The two-day biennial conference convened by the University Fund brings together Vice Chancellors, Principals of Universities and Constituent colleges and is aimed at deliberating various challenges facing university education, top on the agenda being funding.
The conference comes even as the Presidential Working Party on Education Reforms has proposed a threefold increase of university fees for government-sponsored students from the current Ksh16, 000 to Ksh52, 000.
The proposal received the backing of University Fund Chief Executive Officer Geoffrey Monari, saying this will improve the quality of university education.
Public Universities are on the verge of collapse after it emerged that they have pending bills amounting to Sh56 billion accumulating from non-remittance of statutory deductions, deferred salaries, unpaid suppliers among others.
CS Machogu however affirmed government’s commitment to bailing out.
