On 9 May 1941, the foundations of modern agricultural higher education in Kenya were laid when Egerton Farm School officially opened in Njoro, Nakuru County. Established on a 740-acre estate donated by Lord Maurice Egerton of Tatton, the institution welcomed its first class of just 22 European male students, who were trained in commercial farming, livestock management, and modern agricultural practices.

The school was founded to address the growing demand for skilled agricultural personnel in Kenya’s colonial farming sector. Its curriculum combined classroom instruction with practical farm work, reflecting the importance of agriculture to the country’s economy during the colonial period.

Although access to the institution was initially limited by the racial policies of the time, its history mirrors Kenya’s broader political and social transformation. Over the following decades, Egerton Farm School expanded its programmes, admitted students from all communities, and evolved through several stages, from a diploma college to a constituent college of the University of Nairobi in 1986, before attaining full university status in 1987 as Egerton University.

Today, Egerton University is recognised as Kenya’s oldest institution dedicated to agricultural education and research and remains one of Africa’s leading universities in agriculture, veterinary medicine, environmental sciences, and food security. Its graduates have played a central role in advancing farming, agricultural research, and rural development throughout Kenya and beyond.

The opening of Egerton Farm School on 9 May 1941, therefore, marked far more than the establishment of a small colonial training centre. It was the beginning of an institution that would help shape