KISUMU, Kenya — President William Ruto has issued Kamagambo University with a Letter of Interim Authority, allowing the institution to begin operating as a university under the supervision of the Commission for University Education.
Speaking at Kisumu State Lodge on Tuesday, President Ruto said the authorisation recognises the progress made by the institution and allows it to establish governing bodies and develop academic resources.
The university will initially offer three degree programmes, subject to approval by the Commission for University Education.
They are Bachelor of Education in Arts, Bachelor of Arts in Theology with Entrepreneurship and Bachelor of Business Administration with Entrepreneurship.
“Today, from the lakeside city of Kisumu, we admit Kamagambo University into Kenya’s higher-education system through the award of a Letter of Interim Authority,” Ruto said.
He explained that the interim approval does not amount to the award of a full university charter.
“The word ‘interim’ matters. Kamagambo has crossed the threshold, but it has not reached its destination,” he said.
The President told the university’s management that it must demonstrate academic integrity, good governance, prudent use of resources and consistent quality before qualifying for a charter.
Kamagambo University traces its history to an Adventist mission established in 1912. The institution later became a teacher-training centre whose graduates served in schools across the country.
It becomes the third private university established by the Adventist Church in Kenya after the University of Eastern Africa, Baraton, and the Adventist University of Africa in Ongata Rongai.
“An institution that trained teachers will now educate professionals, entrepreneurs and leaders,” Ruto said.
According to the President, Kamagambo’s admission into the higher-education system raises the number of institutions authorised to operate as universities in Kenya to 90.
He said the Commission for University Education recorded about 630,000 students pursuing degree programmes in 2024.
Nearly 124,000 students graduated that year, compared with approximately 100,000 the previous year.
Ruto, however, cautioned universities against focusing exclusively on increasing enrolment without safeguarding the quality and relevance of their courses.
“Access without quality disappoints the student, and quality without relevance disappoints the nation,” he said.
He urged institutions of higher learning to equip students to create businesses and solve problems instead of preparing them only to seek formal employment.
The President called for closer cooperation among universities, employers and the government to ensure courses respond to the country’s changing labour and development needs.
He said employers should help shape curricula, universities should expose students to workplaces, and the government should create an environment in which research can be transformed into technology and employment.
“Research must also travel. It must leave the journal and reach the farm, the classroom, the clinic, the factory and the marketplace,” Ruto said.
He directed Kamagambo University to prioritise quality in its three approved programmes before seeking to expand its academic offerings.
The institution was also asked to align its teaching and research with the needs of Migori County, the Lake Region and the wider country.
