Moi University Breaks Silence on Financial Crisis as Management Declares Recovery Plan ‘Working’ After KSh18 Billion Debt Shock
Moi University has sought to calm growing fears over its future, insisting the institution is firmly on the path to recovery after months of financial turmoil that exposed billions of shillings in debt, raised the spectre of an auction, and threatened to paralyse operations.
In a statement released on Friday, July 3, the university assured students, parents, staff and the public that it remains fully operational despite one of the most severe financial crises in its history.
The institution said teaching, examinations and graduation programmes are continuing without interruption, even as management works to reverse years of financial mismanagement and mounting liabilities.
“Moi University wishes to give our students, staff, parents and the wider public an unequivocal assurance that the University is open, fully functional, and continues to deliver on its academic mandate,” Acting Vice-Chancellor Professor Kiplagat Kotut said in the statement.
The reassurance came barely a day after the university’s leadership appeared before the National Assembly Departmental Committee on Education to explain the institution’s deteriorating financial position and outline the reforms being implemented to restore stability.
According to the university, the financial challenges did not arise overnight but accumulated over several years, eventually necessitating intervention by the Government through the Ministry of Education, working alongside the University Council and management.
Officials told lawmakers that a comprehensive recovery strategy is now beginning to bear fruit, with reforms targeting stronger financial governance, tighter expenditure controls, enhanced revenue mobilisation and administrative restructuring.
The university said these measures have already helped narrow its revenue deficit and placed the institution on a gradual path towards financial recovery.
Management further assured stakeholders that academic programmes remain on course across all campuses.
Teaching and learning, the university said, are proceeding according to schedule, the academic calendar has been fully restored, examinations are continuing as planned, and graduation ceremonies will be held without disruption.
The institution also moved to allay concerns among employees, saying staff salaries are now being paid on time as management works towards restoring long-term financial sustainability.
The latest assurance follows months of uncertainty that cast doubt over the future of one of Kenya’s oldest public universities.
In April, internal documents revealed that Moi University faced the possibility of its assets being auctioned after a court issued a garnishee order freezing the institution’s bank accounts in a debt recovery case.
University officials warned at the time that the frozen accounts had severely disrupted operations, limiting access to essential services, delaying salary payments and threatening normal learning activities.
Management cautioned that unless the crisis was resolved, students, staff and other stakeholders would bear the brunt of the worsening financial situation.
The full extent of the university’s financial troubles emerged on Thursday when Acting Vice-Chancellor Professor Kotut told Members of Parliament that Moi University had accumulated more than KSh8 billion in outstanding debt and over KSh10 billion in pending bills, with many of the liabilities dating back to 2014.
The disclosure underscored the scale of the challenge facing the institution as it seeks to rebuild public confidence, restore financial discipline and secure its long-term future.
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