Moi University Lecturers Strike as Freshmen Report to Campus

• Aug 20, 2025

Moi University is facing fresh disruption after lecturers downed their tools just a day before first-year students are scheduled to report, creating uncertainty over the new academic year.

In a statement on Wednesday, August 20, the Universities Academic Staff Union (UASU) Moi University Chapter accused the institution’s management of ignoring a return-to-work agreement. Chapter Secretary Busolo Wegesa said none of the 25 clauses in the 2021–2025 Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) had been implemented, even though the government had released Ksh500 million to address the issues.

Wegesa emphasized that lecturers were not demanding salary increases but were only asking for what was already agreed upon. He also revealed that more than 900 lecturers cannot currently access health services under the Social Health Authority (SHA) because the university has failed to remit statutory deductions.

The union further cited unpaid June and July salaries, a direct violation of the CBA. On August 13, UASU issued a seven-day strike notice highlighting four unresolved issues, a notice that expired with the start of the lecturers’ strike on Wednesday.

Despite the industrial action, Moi University’s management has assured students and stakeholders that academic programmes will continue. In a statement issued on Friday, August 15, Vice-Chancellor Prof. Kiplagat Kotut maintained that teaching, examinations, research, and preparations for the admission of new students remain on schedule.

“We reiterate that teaching, examinations, research, and all academic programmes are continuing as scheduled. This includes preparations for the reporting of our first-year students on Thursday, August 21, 2025, which will proceed as planned,” Prof. Kotut said.

However, this assurance contradicts UASU’s position, with the strike now threatening to paralyze key academic activities. The standoff has left students, parents, and guardians uncertain about how learning will unfold in the coming days.

The impasse underscores the growing challenges faced by public universities in Kenya, where delayed government funding, salary arrears, and unfulfilled CBAs have repeatedly strained relations between staff and administration. With the first-year reporting date approaching, Moi University finds itself caught in a standoff that could define the academic year ahead.