Over 700,000 public university students across Kenya remain stranded in academic limbo as the nationwide strike by the Universities Academic Staff Union (UASU) and the Kenya University Staff Union (KUSU) enters its third week.
The industrial action, which began on October 2 following the breakdown of pay talks, has brought learning, research, and administrative services to a complete standstill across more than 35 public universities.
Tensions reached a boiling point on Wednesday, October 21, when University of Nairobi (UoN) students staged street protests and temporarily blocked Waiyaki Way, demanding an immediate resolution to the impasse. Similar demonstrations and calls for action have emerged from students at Chuka University and other public campuses, where learners expressed rising fears over postponed examinations, disrupted graduations, and wasted accommodation costs.
The deadlock deepened after union leadership officially rejected a KSh 12 billion counteroffer presented by Education Cabinet Secretary Julius Ogamba and the National Treasury. UASU Secretary-General Dr. Constantine Wasonga reiterated that the strike will continue until the government presents a binding return-to-work formula and fully implements the 2025–2029 Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA).
With no formal agreement in sight, student governing bodies are calling on the Ministry of Education, Treasury, and union leaders to reach an immediate compromise to salvage the ongoing academic semester.