The University of Nairobi (UoN) dropped off the top 1,000 universities in the world in the QS World University Rankings 2026, reflecting broader concerns about sub-Saharan Africa’s declining competitiveness in global post-secondary institutional ratings.
The UoN,which has recently been rocked by managerial wrangles and cash flow challenges,is now ranked in the 1,001–1,200 bracket, down from its previous position of 901–950, indicating a decline in both its global standing and regional performance.
The QS World Rankings is a system that evaluates and compares universities worldwide based on various performance indicators.
UoN now shares this tier with Makerere University in Uganda and the University of Lagos in Nigeria, as sub-Saharan Africa contends with increasing international competition.
This year, the QS rankings assessed over 1,500 universities across 106 countries, with only 19 institutions from sub-Saharan Africa making the list. Of these, only three improved their overall rankings, all of them from South Africa, while Kenya's sole representative declined.
"With only three of the 19 institutions in sub-Saharan Africa improving their rankings, universities need to ensure they keep up with advancements in higher education worldwide," said Ben Sowter, QS Senior Vice President.
However, UoN maintains a relatively strong position in the 'Employment Outcomes' category, scoring 95.6 and ranking 72 globally. This indicator assesses how well graduates perform in the job market, which is crucial for both students and employers.
UoN's employability ranking has fallen by five positions compared to last year, highlighting growing pressure on the university to remain relevant in a rapidly evolving job market.
In subject-specific rankings, UoN is placed in the 201–250 bracket, showcasing its strengths in areas such as development studies, agriculture, and education.
While the institution faces challenges in broader metrics such as research output and international engagement, it continues to be respected in certain academic disciplines.
In the sustainability rankings, which evaluate universities based on their environmental and social impact, as well as their governance, UoN falls within the 1081–1100 bracket.
This indicates significant room for improvement in areas such as environmental research, energy use, and sustainable institutional practices.
Sub-Saharan Africa's traditional strengths in employability and academic networks are under pressure. UoN, for example, has seen declines in academic reputation, citations per faculty member, and faculty-student ratio —all of which are high-weight indicators accounting for 60 percent of a university’s ranking.
The UoN continues to underperform in global engagement metrics such as attracting international faculty and students, and it does not feature in the top 500 globally in these categories.
This stagnation reflects the systemic and policy challenges faced by Kenyan universities, including underfunding, brain drain, limited research funding, and bureaucratic obstacles, all of which hinder innovation, talent retention, and international collaboration.
South African universities dominated the region, with 11 institutions being ranked, including the University of Cape Town, which improved its global position from 171 to 150. It was one of only three African institutions to improve its position, alongside the University of Johannesburg and the University of KwaZulu-Natal.
