Education Cabinet Secretary Julius Ogamba has reiterated the government’s commitment to finding a lasting solution regarding the on-going public universities lecturers’ strike.

Speaking to the press after leading the Mazingira Day 2025 tree planting exercise at Kenyoro Primary School in Marani Sub-County in Kisii, Ogamba said negotiations were underway between the university officials, lecturers and the Salaries and Remuneration Commission (SRC) to resolve the stalemate.

“Involved parties have agreed to form a technical team that is going to review the payrolls and confirm how much money has been paid, out of the money that the lecturers are requesting for,” the CS explained.

According to Ogamba, SRC has maintained that money owed to the lecturers was Ksh624 million instead of the Ksh7.9 billion as claimed by the universities Union, as part of the 2017-2021 and 2021-2025 Collective Bargaining Agreements (CBAs).

He encouraged the universities’ unions to talk to their members to resume teaching even as the grievances are being resolved.

Regarding the increased cases of arson in schools, the cabinet secretary urged the school administrators and students to embrace dialogue as a means to addressing grievances in schools.

Ogamba also encouraged the parents to counsel their children, adding that the burden of rebuilding infrastructure destroyed by school fires laid with them.

“We also ask the parents to engage their children by encouraging them when there is an issue, to have those issues resolved in an amicable way, so that we do not reach the level of destroying school property because it becomes expensive,” he stressed.

The cabinet secretary noted that his ministry has planted at least 2,000 trees in primary schools within the country on this year’s Mazingira Day as part of contributing towards achieving the national target of planting 15 billion trees by 2032 under President Ruto’s Jaza Miti Programme.

Ogamba, together with education officials and partners, local leaders, students and residents, planted over 4,000 assorted tree seedlings at Kenyoro Primary and Secondary Schools in Marani Sub-county, to mark the Mazingira Day 2025 tree planting exercise in Kisii.

• A Tell Media / KNA report / By Mercy Osongo