CS Constitutes 2 Committees to Review Funding Model & Asks Students to Call Off Demos
The government on Sunday announced that it will establish two working committees to work on the new funding model with a representation of students in a bid to try to cool down the recent stalemate at the core of the country’s education system.
The Ministry of Education in a statement in response to the planned university students demonstrations announced that the working committees will draw membership from the student leadership, experts and other relevant stakeholders.
‘’For greater efficiency and to achieve meaningful student participation and involvement, the Ministry is consulting two time bound working committees that will draw membership from the student leadership, in addition to experts and other relevant stakeholders,’’ the statement read in part.
According to the Ministry, the committees will review the status of implementation of the new funding model and make recommendations for its improvement.
Meru National Polytechnic students protest after 3 students die in a road accident on March 8, 2024
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Godfrey Mutwiri
The government, therefore, implored upon university students to call off their demonstrations scheduled for September 9, 2024, to give them time to contribute effectively to the issues pertaining to their education.
‘’In order to allow room for this open consultation, the university student leadership is requested to call off the demonstrations scheduled for 9th September, 2024,’’ the Ministry urged.
The government also announced that the terms of reference for the committees will be published within the week after input from the students.
Key among the areas to be worked on by the committees will include appraisal of the new funding model for higher education, evaluation of the effectiveness of the means testing Instrument to ensure that categorization of students reflects their socio economic realities.
‘’The terms of reference will also cover assessment of the efficacy of the appeals mechanism in achieving correct student categorisation for funding,’’ the Ministry revealed.
The committees are also expected to work on the cost of programs studied in the universities across the country as well as review structure of student loans, interests paid and and the period for payment of the loans.
The Ministry announced that the move was from the recent engagements that necessitated the need for integration of students in more of its decision making processes.
University students across the country had issued notice of planned demonstration across the country on September 9, 2024 to protest the New Funding Model.
Inside a class at Mama Ngina University College.
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Mama Ngina University
