Kenyan student numbers drop in Uganda

The number of Kenyan students studying in Ugandan universities has declined, officials have said.

Kampala University, which has the highest number of Kenyan students after Kampala International University, recorded a drop in the past one year.

According to Prof Badru Kateregga, Vice Chancellor of Kampala University, 643 students out of 2,872 expected to graduate on Thursday are Kenyans, representing a drop from 44 per cent last year.

“I think some Kenyan parents and students no longer have faith in our education system because of the controversy surrounding the governor’s papers,” said Mr Fredrick Sempala, an education analyst.

GOVERNOR CASE

A case was filed against Mombasa Governor Hassan Joho at a Kampala court over alleged illegal acquisition of a degree from Kampala University. (READ: War of words over Joho papers)

Mr Joho however says he has a Bachelor's degree in Business Administration from the institution. Last month, a judge temporarily stopped the Uganda police from investigating how the governor was awarded his degree.

Kenya has 22 public universities, 26 private universities against Uganda’s six and 30 respectively.

Uganda has for decades been an education hub for Kenyan students and an estimated 40,000 Kenyans are said to be studying in Uganda.

Mr Abbas Agaba, an official at KIU said the dominance of Kenyan students at the institution had largely been driven by the high cost of tertiary education back home.

This article first appeared in the Daily Monitor.