New commission awards charters, accredits universities

By Maina Waruru. Kenya’s recently established Commission for University Education hit the ground running, awarding charters to more than 20 public and private universities as required by the law in the weeks after it got up and running earlier this year. The commission accredited 11 new public universities that were previously constituent colleges of established universities, bringing to 18 the number of public universities in Kenya. Top among the newly promoted and named former colleges are Jaramogi Oginga Odinga University of Science and Technology, Dedan Kimathi University of Technology and Maasai Mara University. Others include the universities of Chuka, Eldoret, Kisii, Laikipia and Pwani, and the Technical University of Kenya. The Commission for University Education, or CUE, also granted charters to 14 private universities mainly run by churches, which have over the years served to greatly ease the burden on public higher education institutions. Read more...