The High Court of Kenya’s Constitutional and Human Rights Division in Nairobi ordered Egerton University to provide remedial courses to students who were enrolled in unaccredited engineering programs between 2014 and 2019. This ruling was made following a petition filed by student representatives Ian Nyagah and Henry Mulyungi, on behalf of 55 other students.
The petitioners argued that their degrees lacked accreditation from the Engineers Board of Kenya (EBK), preventing them from registering as graduate engineers. Justice Lawrence Mugambi, delivering the ruling virtually, stated that Egerton University had violated the students’ consumer rights by offering programs that did not meet EBK’s accreditation standards.
“The gravamen of the petition is the allegation that the 1st respondent offered unaccredited engineering courses to its students who upon graduation, the Engineers Board of Kenya (3rd Respondent), refused to register as graduate engineers, thereby denying them a chance of ever becoming engineers,” Justice Mugambi decreed.
The court directed Egerton University to cover the full cost of the remedial courses, which must be completed within three months, or as individually arranged between the students and the university. The courses are designed to address deficiencies in the university’s programs, enabling the affected students to meet EBK’s standards.
The ruling also clarified the roles of the Commission for University Education (CUE) and the EBK in accrediting engineering programs. While CUE accredits university programs in general, the EBK is responsible for ensuring that engineering courses meet industry standards. Justice Mugambi ordered CUE to cease accrediting engineering programs without approval from the EBK.
