The government has been urged to formulate measures to address the spate of student unrest in higher learning institutions.
Maseno University Chancellor Michael Joseph yesterday called for concerted efforts to curb occurrences of students’ unrest which has led to massive loss of property.
“The destruction caused by such incidences is costly to bear. It is high time University Managements, with the help of government designed mechanisms, minimise such incidences,” Joseph said.
Speaking during the graduation ceremony at Siriba main campus, the don said that universities face numerous challenges in the process of executing their core mandate as centres of academic excellence.
He noted that Maseno University recently lost property worth millions of shillings through fire, which started in unclear circumstances.
“I assure all stakeholders that the University has put in place strategies to reconstruct the offices and recover information lost in the fire,” he added.
“This will ensure that our performance remains at its optimum for the benefit of our students.”
He also called for more investment on the e-Library which is increasingly becoming popular even with the students learning through the face-to-face module.
The chancellor noted that the students’ population at the e-Campus which was established in 2007 has increased tremendously due to online accessibility.
“It is the University’s goal to expand the capacity of e-Campus to address the ever-growing demand for e-learning in the world today," he said.
He also challenged university staff and students to be innovative to meet the global market demands adding that lecturers should ensure quality education and market-oriented courses relevant to the Kenyan market.
He said the institution is also expanding its programmes by establish more campuses across the country.
“Maseno has established Campuses in Kisumu City and Homa Bay town among other towns,” he said.
A total of 3,838 graduands from various disciplines were awarded degrees, diplomas and certificates.
Twenty-five graduands were conferred with PhD, 116 masters and 3,301 Bachelor’s degrees, 24 post graduate diplomas and 90 certificates.