UoN orders students back to lectures following end of nationwide university strike

NAIROBI, Kenya, November 2 – The University of Nairobi has resumed teaching, examinations and other academic activities following the end of a nationwide lecturers’ strike that disrupted learning in public universities for nearly a month. In a notice issued on Monday, the university said teaching, learning, examinations, research and other operations would resume immediately, directing students to attend lectures and clear any outstanding fees. The University of Nairobi announced the resumption in a notice dated November 2, signed by Acting Deputy Vice-Chancellor for Academic Affairs, Prof. John D. Mande. He directed students to clear any outstanding fees and attend lectures without fail. “The University of Nairobi wishes to inform all students and staff that teaching, learning, examinations, research and other functions will resume on Monday 2nd November, 2026,” he said. The announcement follows a return-to-work agreement signed on Friday, October 30, between the government and university staff unions, ending the industrial action that began on October 2 over unresolved Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) commitments and related salary arrears. The strike was called off after the government agreed to provide Sh20 billion towards implementing the 2025–2029 CBAs, with the funding spread over three financial years. UASU Secretary-General Constantine Wasonga announced the end of the strike after negotiations with the Inter-Public Universities Councils Consultative Forum (IPUCCF), under the auspices of an Inter-Ministerial Committee. “Today’s agreement is a compromise, and reaching it was not easy. In making concessions, UASU carefully balanced the plight of students with the fundamental rights of academic staff to dignified working conditions, collective bargaining and pension security,” Wasonga said. Under the agreement, Sh6.7 billion will be released in the 2026/2027 financial year, another Sh6.7 billion in 2027/2028 and the remaining Sh6.6 billion in 2028/2029. Lecturers will also receive a 3.5 per cent annual basic salary increment for four years, backdated to July 1, 2025, alongside an automatic annual increment of five per cent. The deal further provides for harmonisation and increases in commuter, leave, and passage and baggage allowances for the majority of academic staff. On outstanding payments, salary and allowance arrears accumulated between July 1, 2025 and June 30, 2026 will be settled in three instalments. Arrears covering the period between July 1 and December 31, 2026 will be paid together with January 2027 salaries. The agreement also addresses concerns over possible victimisation of staff who took part in the strike. Disciplinary proceedings initiated against employees during the industrial action are to be withdrawn, while participation in the strike will not be used as grounds to deny contract renewals to academic staff employed on fixed-term contracts. Wasonga thanked the government, particularly the Ministry of Education and the National Treasury, for providing the funding required to implement the CBAs, and assured union members that the return-to-work formula would protect them from victimisation. “We have now achieved the objectives of our strike. The strike is over,” he declared. The strike involved the Universities’ Academic Staff Union (UASU), the Kenya Universities Staff Union (KUSU) and the Kenya Union of Domestic, Hotels, Educational Institutions, Hospitals and Allied Workers (KUDHEIHA), affecting public universities and their constituent colleges.