Female students from universities across the country meeting at Machakos University on October 31, 2025. Photo by Virginia Siebella. 
By Virginia Siebella
Female students from universities across the country are raising the alarm over the ongoing lecturers’ strike, now entering its eighth week, saying it has plunged their academic lives into uncertainty and despair.
During a gathering at Machakos University, students voiced their frustrations, accusing the government of neglecting their right to education by failing to resolve the salary dispute with university lecturers.
They condemned what they termed as “silence and inaction” from state officials, calling for an immediate end to the stalemate that has left thousands of learners idle and confused.
Machakos University student president Ashley Chepkoech urged the government to respect the academic calendar, warning that continued delays would jeopardize the future of a whole generation.
“We demand that learning resumes immediately. Our ambitions and careers are on the line,” Chepkoech said.
The unrest extends beyond state universities, with private universities joining the solidarity movement. Africa Nazarene University’s student president, Mulinge Alice, urged the government to “uphold the sanctity of education,” accusing it of diverting resources toward other sectors at the expense of students’ futures.
Students also decried police brutality witnessed during recent demonstrations in Nairobi, where learners from the University of Nairobi and Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology (JKUAT) were allegedly assaulted.
JKUAT vice president Christine Maina faulted the Ministry of Education for failing to address their grievances even during peaceful protests outside their offices.
Adding their voices to the chorus of discontent, students questioned the government’s priorities, pointing to the recent launch of the Nyita program and major financial rewards issued to the national football team, Harambee Stars. “How can millions be allocated to sports while education, a key national pillar, remains underfunded?” one student asked.
Anne Kemunto, another student, urged striking lecturers to stand firm and reject the government’s proposal to pay KSh 7.9 billion in arrears in installments. “Compromise will only perpetuate the crisis. We urge lecturers to hold the line until the full amount is settled,” she said.
The effects of the strike have been deeply felt by families as well. Machakos University student Maggie Elizabeth shared how her parents are “mentally distressed” by the prolonged disruption, with final-year students and those preparing for industrial attachments particularly anxious about their academic futures.
“We feel abandoned,” Elizabeth added. “We need the government to act, not talk.”
As the strike threatens to extend indefinitely, the united voices of female students across the country now call for urgent government intervention to safeguard their education—and their future.
