Turkana University A Noble Idea Whose Time Has Come

Fountain of Knowledge: University of Nairobi

The Turkana County Government's decision to build a university in a bid to promote higher education deserves tremendous praises. Personally having seen the benefits - direct and indirect - of a university, I find this decision epochal and game-changing. It is just what the cattle herders of Turkana ordered!

I may not be able to know what (officially) informed the county government's decision but I can gather some points from my interactions with folks out there. My people have "seen" that school is indeed a solid investment that endures all changes. 

Some of you may christen this a "mental shift." The crux of the matter is however different: My people are on a frenzy to assert their position in a community of successful people. Mark you, their target isn't just Kenya. They are tired of being lampooned and being used as a reference point for poverty. They want to change this script – for good.

You see, the need to suppress this "ridicule" is, in my view, the power behind the proposed Turkana University Project (TUP).

This year alone Turkana County, media people say, will send some 500 students to university. This, knowledgeable people affirm, is a step ahead following many years of the community’s "under-representation" at the university level.

A quick history search reveals why these pundits could be right. In years past, university education in this region was akin to a description of a few people - mainly those residing in what locals refer to as towns. For my ever-jovial cow herders, education had nothing to do with them. An encounter with education began and ended in a primary school.

As we speak, things aren't the same again. A quick chat with village folks is what you need to feel the undercurrents shaping education among my pastoralists’ brothers and sisters. 

Simply stated, these undercurrents lead to bigger questions: Would TUP live up to the expectations of the certificate-less, but skilled folks out there? Would its benefits cascade down to the valleys and plains of Turkana where a majority of these people call home?

Understandably, it is too early to raise these questions. However, failure to do so leaves many doubts.  

TUP stands a better chance of injecting a new economic thinking to Kenya - and perhaps, the world over - vis-à-vis the relation between institutions of higher learning and local communities.

There are solid reasons to explain this standpoint. TUP is inherently an idea of the poor, by the poor and for their own emancipation. It is predicated on an inclusive thinking.

Second, Turkana boasts of, well, the largest proportion of Kenya's illiterate mass. Their uniqueness is undeniably a big boost to this inclusive thinking. And so, some of us ask, have TUP's initiators thought of tapping into this uniqueness, (of course to the advantage of the people)?

Third, nomadic lifestyle remains a virgin domain. Now, marry this with the ongoing interventions to introduce agriculture in this region and you get a minefield for intellectual extraction. I have no doubt TUP will emerge as the home-grown "unifier" of this marriage.

Fourth, TUP is a true testament of what local-based decision making has to do with pulling people up the economic ladder. 

I can't wait to see this project on its feet. This, for me, is a comprehensive answer to the many questions I have raised through my writings and talks. 

Hitherto "locked" counties are here to "teach" Kenya what devolution is all about. With devolution train snaking through the plains and valleys of northern Kenya, believe me, things will never be the same. And Turkana has already set the record straight. 

Long Live Turkana University Project!!!

Lemukol Ng'asike is an architect. Email:  lemoseh89@gmail.com . Twitter: @mlemukol.