Nairobi Senator Edwin Sifuna has sounded a warning about the growing housing crisis affecting university students across the country.
According to the senator, many students are being forced to live in Nairobi’s slums due to the sharp increase in on-campus hostel accommodation fees, which are becoming too expensive for most learners to afford.
Speaking during a Senate session on Thursday, July 24, Sifuna expressed deep concern that the skyrocketing costs of university hostels are pushing students out of campus housing and into insecure and overcrowded informal settlements.
He described the situation as a crisis, blaming public universities for what he termed as reckless and unjustified fee hikes that are adding to the financial burden students already face due to the high cost of living in Kenya.
“University students are now being pushed into slums because the hostel rates have gone through the roof. They simply can’t afford to live on campus anymore,” Sifuna said, adding that this growing trend poses serious safety and health risks for students.
The senator urged the Senate Education Committee to step in immediately and launch an investigation into the rising accommodation fees. He also demanded accountability from universities, asking them to explain how they arrive at these high charges and whether there’s any regulatory body keeping them in check.
Sifuna’s remarks come at a critical time when universities across the country are preparing to admit thousands of new first-year students, following the recent release of placement results by the Kenya Universities and Colleges Central Placement Service (KUCCPS).
This year alone, KUCCPS has placed over 194,000 students in degree programs at public universities, all of whom are expected to start reporting in August.
One of the major problems facing these universities is the limited availability of on-campus housing. For instance, the University of Nairobi (UoN) only has about 10,000 hostel beds, yet it serves a student population of over 47,000.
This means nearly 80% of students must look for accommodation outside the university premises—often in less secure neighborhoods due to limited affordable options.
Hostels in public universities are typically allocated via online systems, with government-sponsored students receiving priority. Self-sponsored students, who often miss out on these allocations, are left to seek housing elsewhere, mostly in private hostels or informal settlements.
Previously, university accommodation was known for being pocket-friendly, but that is quickly changing. A recent outcry by University of Nairobi students revealed a massive spike in hostel fees—from around Ksh 6,000 in 2021 to as high as Ksh 43,000 in 2025.
This increase has left many students feeling helpless and on the verge of staging protests.
Meanwhile, the Ministry of Education has already acknowledged that most public universities are in serious financial trouble. Many institutions are struggling to pay staff salaries and keep operations running, which raises further questions about the sustainability of higher education in Kenya.
As more students head into public universities with fewer resources and more financial strain, the government now faces mounting pressure to address both the accommodation crisis and the wider funding issues plaguing the sector.
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