284 Students benefit from University of Embu Endowment Fund

284 needy students from the University of Embu have benefited from KSh2.6 Million  endowment fund to facilitate their education.

The fund's board of trustees chairman Lenny Kivuti said the fund has made notable milestones since its inception including the registration of the endowment fund with a trust deed.

“Our strategy for the future is to grow the fund to help many more students in need so that we can arrest the problem of wastage, especially when students have to drop out or quit their studies because of inability to pay fees or even fund their upkeep in the university,” said Kivuti adding that the University of Embu aims to place the fund in the global arena.

Kivuti said that there is potential for the University of Embu endowment fund to be placed in the global arena with the likes of top universities in the world operating huge endowment funds like Harvard, Stanford and Cambridge universities among others.

He insisted that the university has to convince Kenyans that they can bequeath some of their wealth and it will be taken care of well for many generations to come.

The former Embu senator disclosed that the University of Embu endowment fund board of trustees have been able to mobilize people to endow KSh40Million since the inception of the fund in 2018.

Kivuti said that the endowment fund board of trustees has lined up a series of activities including endowment fund marathon, endowment fund golf tournament and endowment fund gala dinner which the chief guest will be President Dr. William Ruto to help boost the fund.

University of Embu Vice Chancellor Daniel Mugendi said that the university always dedicates KSh2.5Million each financial year to support needy students in the university and that it also has a meal assistance program for the needy students, where students who have challenges of getting meals are assisted to access meals through a meal voucher system supported by the students’ financial aid allocation.

The VC said that despite all the efforts put in place by the university, a good number of students still encounter financial challenges and are left with no option but to call off their semester or academic year.

Prof. Mugendi said that given the financial challenges that students in universities are experiencing to a point of calling off their studies, the institution’s ability to offer modest student aid largely depends on endowment from well-wishers, the school’s alumni, donors and any other institution willing to endow.

Prof. Mugendi underscored on the need to reach out to many individuals, institutions and donors to endow so that the fund can benefit more students in the assistance program.

The VC called on the board of trustees to maintain a steady course of aggressive fundraising initiatives in order to pool more individuals to endow.

Embu Governor Cecily Mbarire said that her administration will ensure that it budgets for KSh.5Million which the former county regime had pledged to endow to the university fund scheme but never fulfilled its pledge.

Governor Mbarire said that the KSh.5Million will be put in the 2023/2024 financial year and urged the members of the County Assembly of Embu to approve it once its taken to the Assembly  so that she can honor her pledge to the university board of trustees.

STORY By MWINGI TIMES CORRESPONDENT