A crucial week-long workshop for the Enhancing Adoption of Competence-Based Agricultural Curricula in Higher Education Institutions in Kenya and Uganda (AGRCBE) project is underway at Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology (JKUAT).
The workshop aims to unite key stakeholders including educators, policymakers, and industry experts from Kenya, Uganda, Finland, and the Netherlands to enhance and finalize strategies for integrating Competence-Based Education (CBE) into agricultural study programs.
Funded by the European Union, the project is committed to creating inclusive and industry-aligned higher education in East Africa in order to give regulators in Kenya and Uganda tools to manage CBE and collaborate with industries so as to integrate real-world skills, train university faculty as CBE experts, and help education bodies adapt CBE to local agricultural needs.
Speaking during the forum yesterday, Professor Daniel Sila, College of Agriculture Principal said the workshop aligns with Kenya’s ongoing curriculum reforms, lauding the AGRCBE initiative as both relevant and timely.
“For the transition to the new education system to succeed, CBE preparation is key. Furthermore, I challenge those involved to intensify communication between academia and industries as this critical effort will help institutions to not only secure resources but ensure that graduates meet industry needs.” He said.
On his part, Prof. Basil Mugonola, the Overall Coordinator from Gulu University in Uganda highlighted the AGRCBE project’s early successes stating that the project, despite being new, has already provided training to over three hundred and twenty-nine university staff members who have now developed into competent professionals.
He added that initial trial runs at partner universities led to revised course modules that now incorporate experiential learning components that have also successfully facilitated regional knowledge-sharing forums sharing elite practices regionally and extending their reach beyond the initial scope of Kenya and Uganda.
The AGRCBE project is collaboratively implemented by several institutions and regional bodies, including the partnering universities: Gulu University and Bishop Stuart University in Uganda, and JKUAT and Egerton University in Kenya.
Key governmental and regulatory partners are the Kenya and Uganda Ministries of Education, the National Council for Higher Education (Uganda), and the Commission for University Education (Kenya), with the project being further supported by the Inter-University Council for East Africa (IUCEA).
The AGRCBE project is playing a key role in East Africa by transforming and aligning university courses with Competence-Based Education (CBE), which is a goal set by the East African Community (EAC).
Although its main focus is on Kenya and Uganda, its partnership with the IUCEA (Inter-University Council for East Africa) allows its influence to spread to countries like Tanzania, Rwanda, and others. This work promotes standardized competence frameworks across the region, which in turn makes it easier for skilled workers to move between countries and strengthens regional food security.
The push for competence-based education is gaining traction across the region. Both Kenya and Uganda are actively implementing the new CBE system, setting the stage for a new generation of university students.
Kenya anticipates its first cohort of CBE students will join universities in 2029, with their Ugandan counterparts slated to enter higher education institutions in 2029.
by Hellen Lunalo
