Invest more in universities to attract lecturers

A meeting of top scholars from Africa at the University of Nairobi has been informed of a dearth of holders of PhD degrees in Kenyan Universities. This shortage is occasioned by the retirement of the older generation of scholars and the tendency by others to move on to greener pastures.

These positions are left yawning for want of suitable replacements. And the question is, why should this be so? Admittedly, lecturing in Kenyan universities lost its allure a long time ago, principally because the remuneration lecturers get is hardly worth the effort.

As of now, University academic staff and lecturers are on strike over a 2013 Comprehensive Bargaining Agreement that they claim the Government has reneged on. As a result of poor pay, there has been brain drain at a level that sees Kenyan lecturers seek jobs in foreign universities.

The lack of incentives also means not many scholars go beyond their master’s degree. Kenyan universities are also stifled by lack of funding for research work. It is the quality of research work a university does that determines its standing among institutions of higher learning, with the positive attribute that it motivates lecturers.

There is no shortage of talent locally, and this behooves the Government to invest more in our universities. The shift that occasioned a cut in funding, giving rise to satellite colleges, should be reconsidered to help Kenya reclaim the position it once held in the academia globally.