284 needy Students from the University of Embu have benefited from Ksh 2.6 million endowment fund to facilitate their education.
The fund’s board of trustees chairman Lenny Kivuti said the fund has made notable milestones since its inception including the registration of the endowment fund with a trust deed.
“Our strategy for the future is to grow the fund to help many more students in need so that we can arrest the problem of wastage, especially when students have to drop out or quit their studies because of inability to pay fees or even fund their upkeep in the university,” said Kivuti adding that the university aims to place the fund in the global arena.
Kivuti said the University of Embu is one of the university operating huge amount of endowment fund saying now the accounty has about 40 million that will benefit the needy Students.
He said the University may soon be place in global map of universities operating such amount in the endowment kitty likening it to Havard ,Stanford and Cambridge universities with rich kitty for endowment fund.
The former Embu senator called on Kenyans to donate some of their wealth and channel it to the kitty so that many needy students can benefit.
“We have witnessed a good progress since this kitty came to existence,many needy students have been supported and our focus is to see many get assisted to learn,”said Kivuti.
Kivuti said that the endowment fund board of trustees has lined up a series of activities including; endowment fund marathon, endowment fund golf tournament and endowment fund gala dinner which the chief guest will be President Dr. William Ruto to help boost the fund.
University of Embu Vice Chancellor Daniel Mugendi said that the university always dedicates Sh. 2.5 M each financial year to support needy students in the university and that it also has a meal assistance program for the needy students, where students who have challenges of getting meals are assisted to access meals through a meal voucher system supported by the students’ financial aid allocation.
The VC said that despite all the efforts put in place by the university, a good number of students still encounter financial challenges and are left with no option but to call off their semester or academic year.
Prof. Mugendi said that given the financial challenges that students in universities are experiencing to a point of calling off their studies, the institution’s ability to offer modest student aid largely depends on endowment from well-wishers, the school’s alumni, donors and any other institution willing to endow.
Prof. Mugendi underscored on the need to reach out to many individuals, institutions and donors to endow so that the fund can benefit more students in the assistance program.
The VC called on the board of trustees to maintain a steady course of aggressive fundraising initiatives in order to pool more individuals to endow.
Embu Governor Cecily Mbarire said that her administration will ensure that it budgets for Sh. 5 M which the former county regime had pledged to endow to the university fund scheme but never fulfilled its pledge.
“In 2023/2024 Sh 5 million will be put in the budget to go to this kitty because it is for the benefit of the needy students,” she said.
By Brian Kaleti
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