DUC for Universities Fund Cluster Programmes as Proposed in the 2023 Education Reforms
Until the 1990s Government was financing the entire University education, including giving students’ stipends. However, following the Kamunge Report of 1988 on Education and Manpower Training for the Next Decade and Beyond, cost-sharing was introduced where the Government was to pay Ksh. 70,000 for every student admitted to University, while the students were to pay Ksh. 16,000 as tuition fees. In addition, students received Ksh. 50,000 from HELB as loans for their upkeep, accommodation and book allowance.
The government grant per student also increased over time to a high of Ksh. 242,000 per student by 2016, with disparities within Universities. The direct tuition fees component paid by students, however, remained the same, although households continued to meet other associated costs. In FY 2017/2018
Government introduced Differentiated Unit Cost (DUC) as a model for funding public Universities. DUC is based on a number of parameters, including staff cost, student-staff ratio, student numbers, cost of infrastructure and operations, student load and cost of programs (MDUC Report, 2015). Fourteen clusters were approved by the Universities Fund, with programs being funded at negotiated Maximum Differentiated Unit Cost (MDUC).
Clinical medicine and dentistry have the highest DUC of Ksh. 720,000, while Applied Humanities and Social Sciences have the lowest cost of Ksh. 180,000
| Cluster | Subject Area | Annual Cost (Ksh) |
|---|---|---|
| 1a | Medicine – Pre-Clinical | 360,000 |
| 1b | Medicine – Clinical | 720,000 |
| IIa | Dentistry – Pre-Clinical | 360,000 |
| IIb | Dentistry – Clinical | 720,000 |
| IIIa | Veterinary Medicine – Pre-Clinical | 324,000 |
| IIIb | Veterinary Medicine – Clinical | 564,000 |
| IVa | Pharmacy-Pre – Clinical | 324,000 |
IVb | Pharmacy — Clinical | 504,000 |
| Va | Architectural Studies — Architecture Part | I 360,000 |
| Vb | Architecture — Professional (Part II) | 432,000 |
| VI | Engineering Surveying | 396,000 |
| VII | The Built Environment and Design — Construction, Real Estate, Urban and Regional Planning, Landscape Architecture, Design, Computing. | 360,000 |
| VIII | Agriculture, Health Sciences, Food Sciences, Natural Resource Management and the Natural Environment- Agriculture, Food Science and Technology, Medical Laboratory Science and Technology, Animal Science, Nursing, Clinical Medicine (BSc.), Radiography, Agribusiness Management, Sport Science, Foods and Nutrition, Medical Psychology, Physical therapy, Public Health, Environmental Health, Community Health and Development, Wildlife Science and Management, Agribusiness Management. | 324,000 |
| IX | Applied Sciences and Education (Science and Technology) Education (Science, Tech, and Special Needs), Exercise and Sport Science, Biochemistry, Biotechnology, Biomedical Sciences, Applied Microbiology and Molecular Biology, Applied and Technical Physics, Applied and Technical Chemistry, Applied and Technical Biology, Statistics, Actuarial Science, Financial Engineering, Environmental Science. | 288,000 |
| X | Basic Sciences Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry, Biology, Geography (B.Sc.). | 264,000 |
| XI | Applied Social Sciences and the Arts (Professional), Hospitality, Media and Communication Studies, Library and Information Studies, Business Information Technology, Sport Science and Management, Fashion Design, Interior Design, Music (B.Mus.), Civil Aviation Management, Maritime Management, Agribusiness Management, Theatre and Film Studies, Fine Art, Food Service and Management. | 240,000 |
| XII | Business, Law, Education (Arts), Economics. | 216,000 |
| XIII | Applied Humanities and Social Sciences — Geography (BA), Public Administration, Psychology, Music (BA), Peace and Security Studies, Disaster Management, Anthropology, Languages, BA with Education, Language and Communication, International Relations and Diplomacy, Social Work and Development Studies. | 180,000 |
| XIV | Basic Humanities, and Social Sciences Economics, Geography (BA), Basic Humanities and Social Sciences – History, Philosophy, Religion, Sociology, Literature, Political Science, Linguistics. | 144,000 |
The Government was expected to finance 80% of the DUC through capitation, while
the remaining 20% was to be provided by the students and Universities. However, since
inception, the Government has never met the 80%, only providing 66.4% in FY 2018/19,
which declined to 48.1% in FY 2022/23. Consistent underfunding of the DUC over the
five years (Figure 10.2) affected operations in many public Universities and resulted in
the accumulation of pending bills.
