Deputy President William Ruto (left) congratulates Mercy Wambui after
she was conferred with a doctoral degree during the Maasai Mara
University graduation ceremony on December 1, 2017. The DP urged
universities to help spur industrialisation. PHOTO | REBECCA NDUKU |
DPPS
The government will allocate resources to universities and other
institutions of higher learning based on the student population and
courses offered, Deputy President William Ruto has said.
Mr
Ruto said the University Funding Board has been asked to give priority
for funding to institutions of higher learning based on the number of
students and the programmes as well as courses offered, saying it is the
only way to attain education that meets the needs of the country in the
21st century.
He asked county governments to encourage
local players to invest in agro-processing, value addition and
manufacturing so as to help create jobs and attain the much-needed
technological workforce in the country.
HOSTELS
The
deputy president also urged the private sector to invest in hostels for
students so that the government can channel its funds to key university
programmes and equipment.
Mr Ruto spoke Friday during the fifth graduation of Maasai Mara University in Narok County.
He
asked the Commission for University Education (CUE) to continuously
assess programmes offered in universities in order to ensure they are in
line with the industrialisation needs of the country.
“We
want in future to make sure that funding is based on courses that meet
the country’s technological [and] human resource needs,” said Mr Ruto.
INDUSTRIALISATION
The
deputy president said it has become clear that industrialisation has
driven economies of many countries, adding that the Jubilee
administration attaches great significance to education and training.
“For
our country to achieve its industrialisation goals, we must have men
and women with skills and competencies to drive the agenda,” said Mr
Ruto.
He said Kenya should identify its priorities and
give more attention to areas that can help accelerate its development
efforts especially in the field of technology.
“As
government, we are focusing our investments in training targeted at
industrialisation to create job opportunities for millions of Kenyans,”
said Mr Ruto.
“Academicians should therefore align
their programmes to target job creation, wealth and opportunities for
the graduands. We can’t achieve this through guesswork but by design,”
added the deputy president.
Mr Ruto said the government
has used Sh1.1 billion in supporting the infrastructural development of
Maasai Mara University and that Sh250 million will be further committed
to help in the construction of the institution’s library.
QUALITY EDUCATION
Narok
Governor ole Samuel Tunai said his county government will continue to
work closely with the university in ensuring it offers quality education
which is in line with the development needs of the area.
“My
government will work with the university in exploring ways of improving
the quality of education at the facility especially in addressing the
needs of the people in the county,” said Mr Tunai.
REFORMS
Education
Principal Secretary Colleta Suda said the government has carried out
major reforms aimed at ensuring quality education.
She
singled out a recent audit carried out in all universities with the
intention of unearthing cases of mismanagement of resources.
“I
want to assure Kenyans that reforms are being undertaken in the sector
to ensure the programmes offered in our universities are in tandem with
the development needs of the country,” said Prof Suda.
Maasai
Mara Chancellor, Prof Philip Ngunjiri, said the university is working
closely with the government in ensuring the relevancy of courses
offered.
Vice-Chancellor Mary Walingo said the
university is collaborating with institutions in China, France and
Canada in equipping its library, adding that the move has led to an
increase in the number of books from 10,000 to 35,000.
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