A Moi University insider has come out to reveal how the institution went broke in a span of two years, accruing over Ksh5 billion in debts.
The institution's Council Chairperson, Humphrey Njuguna, while admitting the financial woes facing the university, revealed that operations in the public institution started taking a beating after the closure of satellite campuses and the scrapping off of certain courses two years ago.
He further attributed the university's financial challenges to a bloated workforce and a reduced number of student enrollment, denying existence of ghost works.
Njuguna noted that currently, Moi University has a student population of 30,000, down from 50,000 a few years ago.
The institution, in October 2019, scrapped off 30 departments in a move that was aimed at harmonising their courses.
It later relocated several students taking education programmes at its Nairobi Campus on Moi Avenue to its main campus in Eldoret.
The school of Agriculture and Natural Resources was also relocated to Kitale Campus.
"We are placing academic staff in the facilities where they are best qualified. These changes will be a game-changer as it will ensure efficiency and cut costs," Vice Chancellor, Prof Isaac Kosgey, stated at the time.
He, however, revealed that the institution had launched some money-generating projects including starting a 6,500-seater Amphitheatre to help it remain afloat.
“This project will allow the institution to host local and international conferences, promote the preservation of the culture and performing arts,” he said.
He added that Moi University had started cultivating apples on its 100-acre farm with its eyes set on the macro market. The institution hopes to expand the farm to 1,000 acres and generate income to support them clear the accumulated debt and service its operations.
Njuguna dismissed that Moi University financial woes were attributed to existence of ghost workers, making it clear that they have admitted the Ethics and Anti Corruption Commission (EACC) to look into that.
“It is not true that we have ghost workers at Moi University,” he said. “The institution has a strong Human Resources Management system that wouldn’t allow existence of ghost workers.”
Justifying the financial woes, Njuguna claimed that Moi University is just experiencing the same challenges as other top institutions in the country.
