Education Cabinet Secretary Ezekiel Machogu has asked graduates to take a more active role in solving problems facing the country such as hunger and drought.
Kenya is currently grappling with unemployment of mostly university graduates who the minister said have turned to short-term attempts to try solve some of the challenges.
Graduates, due to hopelessness, are into betting, short-term jobs, and some dubious ways, the minister said on Saturday at the Meru University of Science and Technology tenth graduation ceremony.
“We want to feel the impact of the universities in solving our homegrown problems,” Mr Machogu said.
The minister was repeating the subject of “solving problems” at almost every graduation ceremony since time aeons, but hopelessness among graduates continues to soar.
Many of them are starting own businesses without success while a big number is in poorly regulated sectors such as riding motorcycles, commonly known as boda boda.
Universities, public and private, are graduating tens of thousands of their students who are looking for non-existent jobs at a time employers, through umbrellas such as the Federation of Kenya Employers, have said they are being given a half-baked brigade that is not industry ready.
Meru University was recently in the news for the wrong reasons when the council ousted Vice Chancellor Romanus Odhiambo.
The CS reinstated the VC, suspended the council, and appointed a new one through a gazette notice on Friday.
Jane Kiringai is the new council chairperson.
She is replacing Bosire Mwebi who had overseen the suspension of Prof Odhiambo on February 27.
Mr Machogu said the government will be “careful” in the people being selected to lead universities.
“We want men and women who know their job is to run institutions,” he said.
“He was doing well and I don’t see the reason he had to be sent packing and the graduation was due.”
