CUEA: Ready to Open its Door for Health Sciences Programs
CUEA Council members
Sr. Jecinter Antoinette Okoth, FSSA
For the purposes of growth and development, the Catholic University of Eastern Africa (CUEA) have the plan of introducing more programs in the university especially the health sciences department.
Sharing with AMECEA Online after a three-day council meeting in Nairobi, the Chairman of the University council Bishop Paul Kariuki Njiru of Kenya’s Catholic Diocese of Embu revealed that CUEA is “thinking of purchasing another three hectares of land to include health sciences as part and parcel of the university.”
According to Bishop Kariuki, even though enrolment in the University has increased and currently it has more than 8,000 students, there is still need for continued marketing especially as the university intends to add more programs in the near future.
Through this, the CUEA University Council Chairman said, “The university can admit more students not only from Kenya but also from other countries within AMECEA region.”
Besides addressing the issue of expanding in the health sciences, Bishop Kariuki narrated that the council also discussed staff welfare, especially the need to promote and motivate the university staff members.
This issue, he said on behalf of the council, is to help “create that community for a family that works towards the same direction enhancing the Catholic identity and value-based education that brings out a good personality of a graduate from the Catholic University of Eastern Africa.”
Additionally, he revealed that the government of Kenya has also given a clear direction that all students can make application to join either private or public university since the school fees for university has been standardized.
Earlier, the government through the Kenya Universities and Colleges Central Placement Service (KUCCPS), an institution mandated by law to place form four graduates in universities and colleges, had initiated the process to end the placement of government-sponsored students in private universities.
Emphasizing on the government’s decision on private universities and placement of students, the Vice-Chancellor (VC) of CUEA Rev. Prof. Stephen Mbugua Ngari who is a member of KUCCPS representing private universities, appreciated the move taken by the government saying, “Students can now have the democratic freedom to make choice of the Universities they would like to join.”
“About the standardized fee for university, we were able to negotiate with the government after they announced placing all qualified students in government universities only, but this has changed,” Fr. Mbugua who doubles as rector of CUEA shared with AMECEA Online Thursday, May 11, a day after the council meeting.
In the statement by the Head of State on the new funding model for higher education, the president underscored that, “All continuing government-sponsored students shall be supported in line with the previous existing funding mode.”
Additionally, “Starting from the 2023/2024 academic year, the process of placing students to universities and TVETS (Technical and Vocational Education and Training), shall not be linked to funding,” reads part of the Statement by President William Ruto on Wednesday, May 3.
The Vice Chancellor Fr. Mbugua appreciated the CUEA university council for their continued concern for the school saying, “The council has been very supportive in giving direction and also guiding and advising the university on the best practices and management to be undertaken.”
“Through them (University council) we have developed more than 10 policies since we started and these policies have sealed the gaps that were in the management,” the Kenyan cleric revealed.
