Every county to get a university if Bill gets nod

Official says new law also outlines measures that will boost quality of training in varsities

By Eric Wainainama

The Government is expected to set up public universities in all counties next year if President Kibaki assents to The University Bill 2012.

Parliamentary Committee on Education chairman David Koech said the expected revolution in the country’s higher learning education sector would ensure all Kenyans easily access higher education.

Dr Koech said apart from increasing the number of universities, the new law outlines measures that will lead to improvement of the quality of education offered by the institutions.

“Everything is ready concerning the Bill. This will see all counties have colleges to enable the inhabitants access education in their locality,” Koech said at the weekend.

He expressed optimism that the President would assent to the Bill and that it will be fully implemented to improve education standards in the country.

High Standards

The Bill, which provides guidelines on establishment, accreditation and governance of public and private universities, proposes creations of Commission for University Education as a successor to the current Commission for Higher Education.

Koech also urged universities and technical colleges to strive for high standard in their programmes, saying they should produce graduands who can compete globally.

“Our universities should uphold quality in their programmes and I would like to encourage universities to offer skills that are of international standards,” he said.

Koech said the Bill also proposes for channeling of more funds towards research and innovation, saying it suggests the two per cent of the revenue be invested in research.

It also establishes the Universities Fund and spells out the procedure for admitting Government-sponsored students to public universities and colleges. 

If passed into law, the Bill will see those who start universities without following laid down procedures pay heavy penalties.