UoN Students vow daily protests until Friday as lecturers’ strike disrupts learning

University of Nairobi (UoN) students have threatened to hold daily demonstrations until Friday, October 30, 2026, to demand that lectures resume after nearly a month of disruption caused by the nationwide lecturers' strike.

The announcement followed protests on Tuesday, October 27, when hundreds of demonstrators barricaded sections of Waiyaki Way with stones, lit bonfires and clashed with anti-riot police. Officers fired tear gas to disperse them and restore traffic on the highway.

UoN student representative Ojwang Obunde said the demonstrations would continue from Tuesday to Friday unless learning resumed across the university's faculties.

The students said the prolonged interruption of academic programmes was causing frustration and warned that continued uncertainty could further disrupt the academic calendar. The strike has affected continuous assessment tests, practical sessions and preparations for graduation, leaving students unsure when normal activities will resume.

The protests followed the collapse of conciliation talks on Monday, October 26, between government representatives and the Universities Academic Staff Union (UASU). The negotiations centred on a proposed Sh11.9 billion settlement package spread over four years, but the parties did not reach an agreement to end the strike.

The strike began on October 2, 2026, over the implementation of the 2025-2029 Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA). UASU has pressed the government to address lecturers' pay and outstanding obligations under the agreement.

UoN Students Association President Ahmed Rashid Burrow criticised both the government and the union negotiators for failing to resolve the dispute. He described the lecturers' demand for an 80 per cent pay increase as excessive, and urged both sides to compromise so that teaching can resume.

Students at other institutions, including Moi University and Jaramogi Oginga Odinga University of Science and Technology, have expressed similar frustration. Student leaders there have called for government intervention.

At UoN, students have asked President William Ruto to intervene and help secure a binding return-to-work agreement. Negotiations between the Ministry of Education, the National Treasury and university academic staff representatives remain unresolved.

Whether the protests continue through the week will depend on developments in the dispute and any progress towards restoring lectures.