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INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF CURRENT RESEARCH 

International Journal of Current Research VoL 5, Issue, 5, pp.I 325-/ 331, May, 2013 
ISSN: 097S-833X 
RESEARCH ARTICLE 
EDUCATIONAL PLANNING: ANALYSIS OF COST-SHARING POLICY IN KENYAN PUBLIC UNIVERSITIES 
lDavid K. Serem, 2George M. Njeri and 1,*Augustine M. Kara 
-Maasal Mara University - P.O Box, 861, Narok, Kenya 
2Institute of Education, University of London - 20 Bedford Way, London WC1H OAL, UK 
ARTICLE INFO 
ABSTRACT 

This paper analyzes cost-sharing policy which was implemented by the Kenyan Government as a strategy t~ deal with the financial crisis that faced public universities in the late 1980s and early 1990s. Confronted by a decline In economic growth, and other urgent and competing social needs like health, as well as pressure from .international organization characterized by the infamous Structural Adjustment Progra~mes (SAPs), ~t was inevitable to distribute between the Government and the students, the costs of public umversity education. Considenng the undisputed role of education in sustainable economic development, strict adherence to policy planning apparatus is important to achieve optimal rates ofretums to education. By applying Haddad and ~emsky's educational policyplanning cycle a critical analysis of the cost-sharing policy from its conceptualization to Its application IS discussed. It is noted that although the policy was inevitable considering the prevailing economic conditions, proper and etTective adherence to the planning cycle was not fully followed. As a result, the policy was received with hostility by parents and students. 
Article History: 

Received I 9th February, 2013 Received in revised form 
25th February, 2013 
Accepted 29th April, 2013 Published online lSthMay, 2013 
Key words: 

Cost sharing, Higher education, Policy planning, Pol icy cycle. 
INTRODUCTION 
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It has been proved that education is vital for any sustainable economic development of any country (Appiah and McMahon, 2010; Becker, 1964; Colclough, Kingdon and Patrinos, 2009; Government of Kenya [GOK], 1964). Proper educational planning is an absolute prerequisite if the rates of return to education are to be optimally achieved (Haddad and Demsky, 1995; Kaufman, Herman and Walters, 2002; Mutua and Namaswa, 1988). However, educational planning is not a smooth process with well-defined objectives, clear alternatives, and a clearly predictable outcome. Rather, it involves many and diverse routes involving stakeholders with different and varied perspectives - both technical and political - and whose diverging viewpoint if well synthesized, results to a well-informed and widely acceptable educational policy. It is therefore important tha~ preplanning and post-planning activities are carried out with provrsions for appraisal and modification where necessary (Haddad and Demsky, 1995). 

This paper describes the cost-sharing policy that was implemented in the 199111992 academic year in all public universities in Kenya. It was a radical policy change from "the state-centered model" of financing universities to "the market competitive model" that was necessitated by the economic recession in the country in the 1980s (Assie-Lurnumba, 2006; Munene, 2009). After ~lucidat.ing the problem, a critical analysis is made of the cost sharing poltcy as. a strategic plan which was introduced as a panacea to the finan~Jal predicament of universities. Haddad and Demsky (1995) provide seven stages of educational policy-planning which include» i) Analysis of the existing situation, ii) Ge~erating ~licy op!i~ns, iii) Evaluating of policy options, iv) Making a policy decision, v) Planning policy implementation vi) Impact assessment and vii) Subsequent policy cycles. 
"Corresponding author: augustinemuchiri@gmail.com 

The paper uses the aforementioned stages to analyze the planning process that was undertaken by the "Report of the Presidential Working Party on Education and Manpower Training for the Next Decade and Beyond' (RPWPEMT). The report laid the foundation for the subsequent implementation of the cost sharing policy (GOK, 1988). 
Country profile 

Geographically, the Republic of Kenya lies in the east coast of Africa bordering Somalia to the East, South Sudan and Ethiopia to the North, Tanzania to the south, and Uganda to the West. Kenya has a population of 41 million people (World Bank, 2011). It covers an area of 582,646 Km2. She gained her independence in 1963 from the British. The official language is English and the national language is Kiswahili (Teferra and Knight, 2008; UNESCO, 2005). The bulk of the Kenyan economy is based on agriculture and tourism which when combined, contribute a third of Gross Domestic Product (GOP). In addition, agriculture employs about 2/3 of the population either directly or indirectly (UNESCO, 2005; World Bank, 20[ I). 
The Problem: Financing higher education in Kenya 
A historical background 

A discussion of Kenyan higher education is of historical and pol itical interest. This is because the system has evolved as an economic need and at the same time as a tool for political maneuvering by various political parties in the country since independence (GOK, 1964; Ojiambo, 2009). The education system in Kenya takes the 8-4-4 model comprising of 8 years of primary, 4 years of secondary and a minimum of 4 years in the university (GOK, 1981). From independence till the late 1980's, Kenya's state universities were able to absorb virtually all the candidates who qualified for university