Deal Reached on Disputed Arrears

University lecturers and non-teaching staff have called off a 49-day nationwide strike after signing a return-to-work formula with the government on Wednesday, November 5, 2025. The agreement, brokered at the Ministry of Education headquarters at Jogoo House, brings an end to an industrial action that had disrupted learning for over 600,000 students in public universities since it began on September 17, 2025.

The breakthrough came after the government committed to paying the outstanding KSh 7.9 billion in salary arrears owed to the university staff under the 2017–2021 Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA). The funds will be disbursed in two phases. The first tranche of KSh 3.88 billion is scheduled for payment between November and December 2025, with the final balance to be cleared by July 2026.

Terms of the Agreement

The signing ceremony was presided over by Education Cabinet Secretary Julius Ogamba and attended by officials from 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). The unions signed the agreement with their direct employer, the Inter-Public Universities Councils' Consultative Forum (IPUCCF).

UASU Secretary-General Constantine Wasonga confirmed the deal, stating, "We have agreed to be paid in two instalments... We are happy that we have secured the whole amount." He assured students that lecturers were committed to recovering the lost academic time, though semester dates may be extended. As part of the return-to-work formula, the university councils agreed to withdraw all disciplinary actions initiated against staff during the strike and guaranteed no employee would be victimised for participating in the industrial action. All withheld salaries for September and October 2025 are to be released by Monday, November 10.

Path to Resolution and Future Negotiations

The resolution followed intense negotiations, which included the intervention of the National Assembly's Committee on Education. The committee recommended the two-phase payment plan after Treasury Cabinet Secretary John Mbadi indicated the government was cash-strapped and could not manage a lump-sum payment. Initially, the unions had rejected a three-instalment proposal from the government before accepting the revised two-tranche offer.

Crucially, the agreement also mandates that negotiations for the subsequent 2025–2029 CBA be concluded within 30 days. This was a key demand from the unions, who had cited delays in negotiating the new CBA as one of the reasons for the strike. Mr. Wasonga issued a stern warning that should the government fail to honour the current agreement, the unions would not hesitate to call for another strike. However, he committed that if the terms are met, "there shall be no strike called by UASU up to 2030."

Impact on Higher Education in Kenya

The seven-week strike had a significant impact on Kenya's higher education sector. Several universities, including Egerton University, Pwani University, and Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology (JKUAT), had been forced to shut down and send students home. The paralysis left thousands of students in limbo, with many forced to seek odd jobs to sustain themselves during the prolonged break from their studies. The disruption has necessitated a reorganisation of academic calendars to ensure the timely completion of studies. The recurrent nature of such strikes continues to raise concerns about the stability and financial health of public universities, which critics argue are underfunded by the state. The resolution brings immediate relief and restores hope for a return to normalcy for students, parents, and the entire university community.