Homa Bay leaders to Ruto: Turn Raila Odinga College dream into reality
Kenya's Prime Minister Raila Amolo Odinga leaves after a ceremony in the Hall of Remembrance at the Yad Vashem Holocaust Memorial in Jerusalem, November 13, 2011.
On January 21, 2022, former Prime Minister Raila Odinga laid a foundation stone for the construction of a higher learning institution in Kwoyo Village in Ndhiwa to enhance access to tertiary education in Homa Bay.
The proposed institution was supposed to be named Raila Odinga University of Agriculture and Technology, with main courses offered there being on crop and animal production.
For a start, it was supposed to be a constituent of Tom Mboya University before its expansion into a fully flagged higher learning institution.
The idea of having the institution in Ndhiwa was to boost skills of residents in agriculture through formal learning.
Ndhiwa MP Martin Owino who came up with the idea said farmers need formal education as a means of improving food security.
He said they need to migrate from peasant farming to commercial production.
Mr Owino said this can only be possible through education.
Initially, residents on Homa Bay who were interested in modern farming attended formal education at the defunct farmers training college in Homa Bay Town.
Its compound is where Tom Mboya University was established but it does not offer lessons on agriculture.
Mr Owino said Homa Bay residents need to acquire specialised skills on how to improve agricultural production.
He called for improved access to agricultural technology training and higher education in Homa Bay County
The National Government Constituency Development Fund (NG-CDF) spent Sh15 million to purchase a 45-acre piece of land for the project.
“Theoretical education is thinning. We need more practical skills and that is why we want to develop a college that will offer training on agricultural engineering, marketing, value addition and other best practices,” he said when he inspected the land in July 2021.
According to the MP, the idea of having a higher learning institution was an idea that started during the reign of former president the late Mwai Kibaki.
He called on the management at Tom Mboya University to move with speed to ensure the proposed institution starts offering services.
When Mr Odinga laid the foundation stone for the project, 2022 presidential election politics dominated speeches with most leaders diverting away from education into attacking Dr William Ruto who was then deputy president under Uhuru Kenyatta’s tenure.
Four years later, the project is yet to pick up and the leaders are not turning on Ruto’s government to finance the project.
Tom Mboya University Vice Chancellor Prof Charles Ocholla told Nation that plans are still underway to put up the institution.
Leaders from Ndhiwa said the idea should materialize as a means of improving residents' knowledge on modern farming.
Kanyamwa Kosewe MCA Nicholas Owaka said the proposed collage should be built for residents to benefit from it for academics and job creation.
He said it was one of the best ideas of helping farmers in Ndhiwa.
“Ndhiwa is Homa Bay’s food basket. Food production is done through subsistence farming. Imagine how much the county can get if farmers get training on modern practices,” Mr Owaka said.
The MCA said Dr Ruto should issue directives for funds to be allocated for the project to continue.
Mr Owaka said the land set aside for the institution should not remain idle.
“We appeal to the government to give the management of Tom Mboya University funds so that they can set up the project. It is one of the avenues of opening up Ndhiwa,” he said.
The ward representative added that having the college will offer job opportunities for residents besides giving them an opportunity to learn.
Dr Ruto is set to visit Ndhiwa on Monday, March 23, a day after touring Kasipul and Rusinga.
Mr Owaka said the construction of Gor Mahia ring road in Ndhiwa should promote improvement of other roads in the region which are currently in bad state.
Mr Owaka pointed out the Mirogi-Kodumba-Kadiyo road that goes around Ruma National park.
Former South Kabuoch MCA Oscar Abote said a visit by the president should provide an opportunity for leaders in Homa Bay to reach out for more development projects.
He said the trip should be used by political leaders to reconcile and solve their differences.
Mr Abote said Ndhiwa is vast with a huge population.
It has seven wards.
The former MCA asked the president to issue a directive for creation of a new sub county after one was created recently.
“We welcome the creation of Ndhiwa East Sub County. But we would like to have two more sub counties to ease access to government services,” Mr Abote said.
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