Background

Rongo University (RU), formally Rongo University College, was awarded Charter by H.E. Hon. Uhuru Kenyatta, the President of the Republic of Kenya on 7th October 2016. The University is located 11 kilometers from Rongo Town, and 2.5 kilometers off the Rongo – Migori Highway. The mission of the University is to provide high quality education through teaching, research, community service and nurturing innovative graduates. Currently, the University has a student population of 6345 and a total staff complement of 458.

The University is committed to developing and delivering quality, market driven academic programs and undertaking research and extension activities. All these are geared toward improvement of local and national socio-economic status and well-being of the Kenyan people and University complementing the Government’s effort towards attainment of the Kenya Vision 2030 and the Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations.

Award of Charter

I wish to congratulate and thank staff, students and all stakeholders of Rongo University for their effort that culminated into the Award of Charter and Accreditation as a full-fledged University.

May we continue to put more effort for prosperity, success and rapid growth as we strive to become a world class technology driven university in learning and practice.

University Governance Organization

The University is governed several organs including Chancellor; The University Council, Senate, Management Board, School Board and Departmental boards. There is also the Student Governing Council.

The University Administrative Structure

The administrative structure comprises Office of the Chairperson of Council, the Vice Chancellor, two Deputy Vice Chancellors, Deans and Directors and Heads of academic and non-academic Departments and units

Physical facilities

RU has vast land at Kitere Hill, Rongo Town and Macalder Township for its infrastructure expansion. The University is expanding its office space, hostels, ICT, dining and accommodation facilities to take care of growing number of students and staff. It has Clinic that can serve up to 100 outpatients per day and substantial teaching space. The main source of water for the University is River Kuja with additional supply from two boreholes and roof water catchment.

Rongo University has many co-curricular activities, recreational facilities including football fields, basketball pitches, table tennis, hockey fields and rugby fields among others.

The University library is stocked with over 20,000 hard books and thousands of electronic resources from The Essential Agricultural Library (TEEAL), Kenya Library and Information Services Consortium (KLISC) and CABI-e-Resources. Plans for construction of a 2000-seater ultra-modern Library is underway and awaiting financing.

Academic Status

The University has six teaching Schools; namely, School of Agriculture, Natural Resources and Environmental Studies; Arts and Social Sciences; Business and Human Resource Development; Education; Information, Communication and Media Studies; and Science, Technology and Engineering. The teaching is done on semesters. The main academic calendar starts in September and ends in April of the following year. Currently the student population is 6345 enrolled in various undergraduate and postgraduate degree programs in the six Schools. The institution continually reviews and develops programs to respond to client needs.

The University has established several partnerships and linkages with various research and teaching institutions both locally and globally including University of Brighton in United Kingdom, Wuhan Textile University in China, Hebei Academy of Agriculture &Forestry Sciences in China, Ariel University in Israel, African Library Project and Project Humanity in USA, the University of Texas at el Paso in USA, University of Applied Management Studies in Germany among others. The institution is involved in research for sustainable food security, peace and democracy, ICT technological improvements, student and staff exchange programs, among others.

Human Resource

The University is an equal opportunity employer and values the constitutional tenets of gender parity and National Cohesion and Integration. Currently, the institution has a total staff population of 458 staff members.

Financial Status

The University is mainly funded by the government with additional funding through A-in-A. In line with the MTEF sectoral goals and the strategic plan, the institution has allocated funds to support development and implementation of new academic programs, enhance research, attract and retain competent staff, increase student enrolment, expand institutional infrastructure and promote community outreach and extension services.

The University has also received money from the government for mentoring three Technical Training Institutes (TTI) including Kakrao, Kendege and Mabera, all within Migori County.

Internal Development Projects

The University is carrying out several construction projects that are at various stages of completion.  The projects are fully funded by the Government of Kenya.

Mentored Technical Training Institutions

The University has been commissioned by the Ministry of Education Science and Technology to mentor Kendege, Mabera, Kakrao Technical Training Institutes within Migori County.

The construction of these TTIs is expected to be accomplished by the end of this calendar year. The TTIs represent the Government effort to strengthen the development of technical skills for the youth as part of industrialization scheme.

The Vice Chancellor,
Rongo University,
P.O. Box 103-40404,
RONGO
Office line: 0770308253
Email: vc@rongovarsity.ac.ke