Kenya Advanced Institute of Science and Technology

Kenya Advanced Institute of Science and Technology
TypePublic University
Established2021; 3 years ago (2021)
Academic affiliation
Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology
Students200 (Pioneer class)
Undergraduates0
Postgraduates200
Location
Konza Technology City
,
Machakos County
,
Kenya

1°40′27″S 37°10′50″E / 1.67417°S 37.18056°E / -1.67417; 37.18056
CampusUrban
Websitekenya-aist.ac.ke

Kenya Advanced Institute of Science and Technology is a postgraduate-only public university established in 2021. The establishment of the university was aimed at meeting the shortage of highly skilled engineers, needed in the country and the region, to drive Kenya into an industrialized nation by 2030.[1][2]

Location

The university is under development on a 22 acres (9 ha) plot of land in Konza Technology City, in Machakos County, close to the county's borders with Makueni County and Kajiado County.[2][1][3] This is approximately 70 kilometres (43 mi), by road, south-east of the central business district of Nairobi, Kenya's capital city, along the Nairobi–Mombasa Road.[4]

Overview

The Government of Kenya, in collaboration with the county governments of Machakos, Makueni and Kajiado counties, and the Konza Technopolis Development Authority (KoTDA), plan to establish an advanced institute of science and technology. The institute is planned to be an all-postgraduate research public university.[5]

After competitive bidding, the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology won the bid to design the university curriculum. A consortium of two Korean architectural and engineering firms of "Samoo" and "Sunjin", won the bid to design and construct the university campus. Those contracts were signed in November 2018.[5]

Construction and funding

Construction is funded by a KSh10 billion (US$72 million) loan from the Export–Import Bank of Korea to the Kenyan government. The facilities are expected to be ready in 2021, with the first intake of 200 postgraduate students starting classes in 2022.[5]

Academics

The university will start with six initial departments:[5][6]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b Kariuki, James (13 February 2019). "Korean Sh10bn Konza university to open in 2021". Business Daily Africa. Nairobi. Retrieved 14 February 2019.
  2. ^ a b Andrew Mbuva (14 February 2019). "Kenya-Korea partner to set up institute at Konza". The Star (Kenya). Nairobi. Retrieved 14 February 2018.
  3. ^ "Location of Konza Technology City, Kenya" (Map). Google Maps. Retrieved 14 February 2019.
  4. ^ Globefeed.com (14 February 2019). "Distance between Nairobi, Kenya and Konza Technology City, Kenya". Globefeed.com. Retrieved 14 February 2019.
  5. ^ a b c d KAIST (13 February 2019). "Kenya-KAIST kicks off with $95 million funding from the Korean government". Washington, DC: EurekaAlert Organization. Retrieved 14 February 2019.
  6. ^ Kenn Abuya (13 February 2019). "Konza City Launches Advanced Institute of Science and Technology". Nairobi: Techweez.com. Retrieved 14 February 2019.