Education Cabinet Secretary Julius Migos Ogamba has directed university lecturers to end their ongoing nationwide strike and resume duties immediately, urging them to obey existing court orders.
Speaking during World Teachers’ Day celebrations on Monday, October 5, 2026, Ogamba said the government has fulfilled key obligations to lecturers and remains committed to resolving outstanding issues through dialogue.
The strike, which began on Friday, October 2, 2026, has disrupted teaching and learning across public universities. It was called by the Universities’ Academic Staff Union (UASU) and the Kenya Universities Staff Union (KUSU), with involvement from other staff unions, after talks with the Inter-Public Universities Councils Consultative Forum (IPUCCF) failed to yield an agreement on the 2025–2029 Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA).
Ogamba highlighted that the Ministry of Education has cleared all arrears arising from previous agreements. “The government has committed to safeguarding the welfare of all our lecturers and has demonstrated this commitment through action. As we speak today, all arrears under the 2017-2021 and 2021-2025 CBAs have been cleared,” he stated
He added that the government is equally committed to timely negotiations and conclusion of future agreements, including the current 2025–2029 CBA under dispute. “It is with this same spirit that we are committed to timely negotiations and conclusion of all future CBAs, including the 2025-2029 CBA,” Ogamba said.
The CS called on the unions and individual lecturers to reciprocate the government’s good faith. “I therefore call upon UASU and individual lecturers to reciprocate this good faith, obey court orders and return to work. Let us not interrupt the education of our students over matters that the government has demonstrated it is ready and willing to resolve at the negotiating table,” he added.
Ogamba emphasised prioritising students’ interests while negotiations continue, noting that the industrial action should not further disrupt university education.
The lecturers’ action centres on demands related to the new CBA, with unions rejecting certain recommendations made without full prior negotiations and insisting that terms of employment be settled through collective bargaining rather than unilateral circulars.
As of Monday, teaching and learning in several public universities remained affected. The government maintains that dialogue remains the appropriate path forward and has signalled readiness to engage on the outstanding issues.