Friday, March 29, 2024

The Power Of The Purse Threatens Academic Freedom In Kenya’s Universities

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By Ishmael Munene

Academic freedom is the right enjoyed by university teachers to teach, research and write in their areas of expertise without fear of retribution by institutional powers or political authorities.

In universities, academic freedom is desirable because their work is to search for truth, transmit knowledge and, often, speak truth to power. Constraints on this freedom threaten the very essence of the university’s purpose.

Fundamental to academic freedom is autonomy: the ability of universities to make internal decisions independent of state control, or control by any outside agent. Generally, this means that academic freedom cannot be divorced from its financial base.

There are 37 state universities in Kenya and 23 private ones. The state subsidy to public universities has fallen dramatically.

For about 20 years, since the state cut its budgets, Kenya’s universities have been shaped by a drive for profit to cover operating costs. In 2011 private revenue – from streams like tuition fees, programme fees and contract research – actually exceeded state subsidies in Kenya’s top five public universities.

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