University lecturers have called off their strike following the government’s decision to fully implement their 2021–2025 Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA), which is valued at Ksh9.7 billion.
The deal signed Saturday by Universities Academic Staff Union (UASU) and the Inter-Public Universities Councils Consultative Forum (IPUCCF) will be implemented in three phases.
The first batch of Ksh4.3 billion will be paid to cover for nine months up to June 2025, while remaining Ksh5.4 billion is to be disbursed in two installments of Ksh2.7 billion each.
“We thank the government for accepting to avail Ksh9.7 billion for the 2021-2025 CBA. The University Academic Staff Union is convinced that the government has ceded to what we wanted. I therefore officially call off the strike that started on 29th October, 2024,” said UASU Secretary General Constantine Wasonga.
The latest development is expected to avert further crisis in the higher education sector which has experienced disruption of academic programs and creating uncertainty for students and staff in all 35 public universities.
“The government has committed that the figures provided for in the CBA are implemented in the next three years. We have also committed to ensure that we start negotiations at the beginning of the cycle. Going forward all our unions in the sector will be negotiating CBAs at the beginning of their cycle and not at the end,” stated Education CS Julius Ogamba.
