- Browse/Search the Program
Search
Browse By Day
Browse By Time
Browse By Person
Browse By Room
Browse By Committee or SIG
Browse By Session Type
Browse By Keywords
Browse By Geographic Descriptor
- Information Menu
Search Tips
- Navigation and Settings Menu
Personal Schedule
Change Preferences / Time Zone
Sign In
Financial Sustainability of HEIs: Evidence from Kenya
Wed, March 13, 6:30 to 8:00pm, Hyatt Regency Miami, Floor: Terrace Level, Brickell CenterProposal
This paper presentation will focus on sharing findings, insights, and reflections on the financial sustainability of HEIs in Kenya. For the last five years, HEIs, especially universities in Kenya, have been reeling under a financial crisis of unprecedented proportions, raising questions about their long-term sustainability. So desperate is the situation that universities are unable to cover basic operating expenses like payment of salaries, utilities, and statutory contributions, including income tax and pension funds (Munene, 2019). Universities and TVET institutions (both public and private) in Kenya play a crucial role in the country's economic transformation, but they have been consistently underfunded and have faced instances of insolvency and bankruptcy (Wangenge-Ouma, 2008; Odhiambo, 2018; ICEF Monitor, 2017). It is essential to develop strategies that ensure the financial viability of HEIs in Kenya to support the broader economic agenda of the country.
The challenges faced by Kenyan HEIs are not unique but reflect common circumstances and issues encountered by HEIs in other LMICs. Although the government budgetary and public resources allocation to higher education has grown in recent years, from 15.5% in 2013-14 to 22.7% in 2018-19 of the national budget, it has barely kept pace with the rapid increase in the number of public universities which doesn’t support the financial sustainability of HEIs in Kenya (Salmi, 2019). This calls for a well-grounded study to understand which strategies HEIs in Kenya are pursuing to improve their financial sustainability and what factors (at the system and at the institutional level) affect their sustainable financing. Therefore, empirical data on the financial sustainability of HEIs in Kenya will provide valuable lessons that can be applied to similar challenges faced by other lower income countries in Africa and beyond.