Africa-Press – Kenya. President William Ruto has challenged universities to be incubators of solutions not only to local problems, but also to challenges facing the wider world.
He said it is imperative that local institutions of higher learning actively participate in finding solutions to pressing global problems.
Ruto spoke during the first graduation ceremony of the National Intelligence and Research University (Niru) in Loresho, Nairobi, on Tuesday.
“I want to challenge this university to go beyond so that progressively we change from the phase ‘African Solutions to African Problems’ to a new one: African Solutions to National and Global Problems,” he said.
During the ceremony, the President, who is also the Chancellor of the university, presided over the graduation of 31 master’s degree students drawn from Kenya and across Africa.
Those present included Cabinet Secretaries Kipchumba Murkomen (Interior) and Julius Ogamba (Education); National Intelligence director general and Niru chair of the Board of Trustees Noordin Haji; Inspector General of Police Douglas Kanja; Niru Vice Chancellor James Kibon; National Defence University Vice Chancellor Lieutenant-General David Tarus; and several Principal Secretaries, among other guests.
In November 2024, the President awarded Niru a charter and directed the institution to expand its academic reach to the Global South, with a specific focus on Africa.
“I am happy to note that more than half of the graduating class — 17 out of 31 — are from African countries, an indication that the university is implementing the directive I gave during the award of the charter,” he said.
The graduates came from Gambia, Rwanda, Tanzania, Burundi and Uganda, among other countries.
He said the enrolment of students from 21 African countries in the fourth cohort signifies not only growth in numbers, but also expanding diversity that strengthens Niru’s role as a strategic hub for knowledge creation, exchange and cooperation.
President Ruto said Niru is uniquely positioned to contribute to Africa’s strategic development priorities, including Agenda 2063: The Africa We Want.
He added that Niru can help shape the new peace and security architecture of the African Union, which he said has long been crafted through Western lenses.
“Key to this approach is being proactive in addressing multi-faceted security threats that have consistently held back progress on the continent,” he said.
Emphasising that no nation can transform beyond its capacity to think, President Ruto said his administration has continued to strengthen Kenya’s human capital through increased funding for education.
“Education, research and innovation remain powerful drivers of inclusive growth, strong institutions and strategic competitiveness in an increasingly interconnected world,” he said.
Although economic indicators show that Kenya’s economy is on an upward growth trajectory, the President said more needs to be done to make the country a first-world economy, with support from higher institutions such as Niru.
During the ceremony, he also witnessed the launch of the African Journal of Security and Strategic Studies, a peer-reviewed publication addressing present and future challenges.
He further witnessed the launch of the Golden Book of Niru, a document honouring its alumni.
Also in attendance were Rwanda’s National Intelligence and Security Service secretary general Aimable Havugiyaremye, Gambia’s State Intelligence Service director general Ousman Sowe, and Uganda’s External Security Organisation director general Joseph Ocwet.
