University students decry lost learning time, rising costs amid lecturers’ strike

With lectures suspended for nearly two weeks, students are urging university lecturers and the Ministry of Education to fast-track talks and end the stalemate. 

Beyond lost classroom time and academic delays, students said they continue to incur rent, food and other living expenses while getting little or no value from the education they came to pursue.

Mid-morning at one of the University of Nairobi’s hostel blocks, small groups of students huddle together, trying to keep themselves occupied. 

On any other day, they would be in lecture halls, attending classes and working towards their degrees. But with lecturers on strike for nearly two weeks, the lecture halls remain deserted, and learning has ground to a halt.

For Jeremiah Bosire, a fifth-year Electrical Engineering student, this is a frustratingly familiar experience, one he has endured far too many times.

“This is the third strike. I used to enjoy it when I was still in my second or third year. It used to give me time to go home,” Bosire said.

This time, however, there is little room for fun and games. For Bosire and other students in their final years of study, every day lost is precious time slipping away, time they can hardly afford to lose as they race towards graduation.

Yvonne Anyango Mambo, a fourth-year student at the University of Nairobi, said the strike has come at a critical point in their academic journey, with students struggling to keep up with projects and other academic requirements.

“This is a critical time for us. We are stressed, the projects and everything. We should be concerned about our education,” Mambo said.

But it is not just the disruption to their education that has students worried. The strike is also burning holes in their pockets.

Dominic Ngare, a student at the University of Kabianga, revealed that he paid rent covering the entire semester, from September to December, but is now spending his time at home without attending classes.

“I had already paid rent for the whole semester, from September to December. Now I am just staying in the house doing nothing,” Ngare noted. 

Fellow University of Kabianga student Isaac Wanjala is also calling for a speedy resolution, saying students are wasting valuable time that should be spent pursuing their education.

“They should sort out those issues so that we can return to class, because right now we are just wasting time. Some of us wake up and spend the day playing games, yet we are grown-ups. We will grow old in school,” Wanjala remarked. 

The lecturers went on strike on October 2, demanding the full implementation of the 2025–2029 Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) and compliance with previous return-to-work commitments. The government, however, maintains that it has already cleared arrears from the 2017–2021 and 2021–2025 CBAs.

Bridgitte Muli, a fourth-year student at the University of Nairobi, said she supports the lecturers’ demands, arguing that their pay dispute is also affecting students.

“I really think the lecturers are right. The government should find a solution and pay them. When the lecturers are not paid, it also affects us because we are staying in the hostels doing nothing. No work, no money. We are really suffering,” Muli said.

The lecturers have rejected a revised government financial offer of about Ksh.12 billion intended to settle some of the outstanding arrears.

For now, students can only hope that the two sides will reach an agreement and allow learning to resume as soon as possible.