By Kevin Odera
Three governors in the North Rift region have begun working on the establishment of public universities in their counties in order to improve access to higher education.
Governor Wisley Rotich (Elgeyo Marakwet), Benjamin Cheboi (Baringo) and George Natembeya (Trans Nzoia) have promised to work with the national government to ensure their plans mature, even as they work on enhancing their local economies.
Mr. Cheboi has held meetings with academicians from various universities on the establishment of a university in Baringo County while Governor Natembeya has promised to ensure a public university is built in Trans Nzoia County.
On the other hand, Mr. Rotich has formed a 15-member task force to look into the chances of improving Tambach Teachers Training College (TTC) and renaming it Kerio Valley University College.
The team is commissioned with evaluating the technical inspection report published by the Commission of University Education (CUE) in August 2016, hold public meetings on the foundation of the university as required by law and examine the preparedness of Tambach TTC to host the projected Kerio Valley University College.
The team is also expected to determine the availability of land and probability of its location and make proposals for the way forward.
The governors’ push seeks to imitate other counties in the region that host institutions of higher learning.
