This archive report was first published on 24 May 2020.
Existential Flaws in Public Universities ¶
Kenya's public universities have been plagued by existential flaws, which have hindered their ability to provide quality education. The spread of the coronavirus pandemic has exposed these flaws, revealing the existence of two parallel universities: the 'administrative university' and the 'academia university.'
The 'administrative university' is the most powerful and influential, comprising administrators, finance officers, and support staff. This university is also the largest, with staff numbers four times higher than teaching staff. The ratio of lecturer to support staff in some public universities is as low as one to six, while in smaller universities, it can be as high as one to nine.
According to Education Cabinet Secretary George Magoha, the high number of support staff has prevented universities from increasing the number of teaching staff. The recurrent costs absorbed by the administrative support staff are over 60 per cent, as their salaries are not different from those of lecturers.
The 'administrative university' has its own interests, which are focused on immediate benefits to themselves. They treat themselves specially, with car parks and infrastructure to support their work. They have little time for the teaching staff and view themselves as 'professor-equivalent.'
On the other hand, the 'academia university' is a pale image of the administrative university. Teaching staff share offices with broken furniture, and teaching rooms and lecture theatres are poorly furnished. The teaching staff do not bother to ask their universities to fix any problems, as they are derided by the administrative staff.
The origins of these divisions date back to the 1990s when government spending on public universities dipped. To raise operational funds, universities introduced a track for commercial tuition fees, which led to the recruitment of new support staff on the basis of tribe and nepotism.
The coronavirus pandemic has disrupted this division in a major way, with online teaching revealing the existence of the 'administrative university' and the 'academia university.' Many staff of the 'administrative university' have found themselves with no duties to perform, while teaching staff and students have re-created the university and given it its true meaning.
The Ministry of Education has been wishing to restructure the universities, but the 'administrative university' has resisted change, as it threatens their self-interest. The pandemic has exposed the deep-seated flaws in Kenya's public universities, and it remains to be seen whether these flaws can be addressed.
