Inoorero university’s prime building set for auction

Nairobi-based International University of Professional Studies, formerly Inoorero University, was Monday facing a major paralysis of its programmes after a creditor put its eight-storey campus building up for auction.

The prime property, which sits on a 0.09 hectare parcel of land on Forest Road within Nairobi’s Parklands area, will be sold when the auctioneer’s hammer falls on August 15.

The sale is said to have been prompted by failure to service a multi-million shilling loan that the college took from a bank about five years ago.

Francis Nyammo, the proprietor and chancellor of the college, on Monday confirmed plans to auction the property but said the institution would resolve the matter with the aggrieved creditors by close of day.

“We had a slip up in the servicing of a facility with a bank triggering the auction threat, but that will be resolved by close of day today (Monday).

A debt is a debt and we don’t deny we owe money, but we have an arrangement to sort out the matter,” he said.

It was not possible to determine how much money the institution owed and which bank was involved as Mr Nyammo declined to discuss the matter.

The university’s management in September 2009 revealed that it had secured a long-term debt of Sh320 million from a local development finance institution besides raising Sh180 million from individual and corporate investors through private placement.

“We will not discuss our financial obligations with our creditors because it is a private and confidential matter,” Mr Nyammo said when prodded on the size of the debt owed.

Sources said the university has operated on a huge overdraft, leading to its present financial woes that followed a dip in student enrolment numbers despite growing demand for higher education.

The institution initially operated as Kenya School of Professional Studies (KSPS) until 2009 when it was granted an interim letter of authority to run as a private university.

The institution then adopted the name Inoorero University on October 15, 2009 but later re-branded to IUPS in November 2013 in a bid to boost its identity amid intense competition from rivals.

The university offers degree courses in commerce, procurement, information communication technology, information science, management and office administration.

“We are confident the small challenge we are facing with our financiers will be resolved and we shall continue with our normal operations,” Mr Nyammo said. Learning institutions, both private and public, are under pressure to admit the surging number of workers seeking to remain competitive in the fast-changing job market with evening classes.

The Economic Survey 2014 shows that about 39,000 students were admitted to accredited private universities last year compared to 276,000 in public institutions.

Plans are under way to have private universities admit State-sponsored students in an attempt to cope with rising demand for higher education.

The arrangement by the Kenya Universities and Colleges Central Placement Service (KUCCPS) was to commence this year, but lack of rules to guide the selection of State-sponsored students joining private universities caused the postponement of the admissions to next year.

In the proposed arrangement, each university was required to deposit Sh100,000 into KUCCPS’ bank account as part of the registration process while colleges would pay an annual subscription fee of Sh70,000.

Upon registration, the universities are required to provide the placement agency with the list of courses for which they plan to admit State-sponsored students and the number of slots available. KUCCPS is then expected to provide Form Four leavers with a list of all chartered universities and approved colleges to choose from.

Implementation of the plans would have presented a big win for private universities and colleges who have for years complained that the defunct Joint Admissions Board (JAB) denied them the opportunity to admit top students to their institutions.

Critics said the extension of the benefits of subsidised university education beyond public institutions is expected to motivate expansion of private universities and address the shortage of spaces for qualified candidates in public universities.