Thousands of students at the Kenya Institute of Management (KIM) can continue with their studies for now after the High Court stopped the immediate closure of the institution.

In a ruling delivered on Wednesday, April 22, Justice Musyoka suspended the decision to revoke KIM’s operating licence, effectively halting the shutdown of its campuses.

The orders will remain in place as the court prepares to hear and determine a case filed by the institution challenging the move.

The judge, sitting at the Milimani High Court, certified the matter as urgent and granted KIM permission to begin judicial review proceedings against the Technical and Vocational Education and Training Authority (TVETA), which had earlier ordered the revocation.

“I have seen, read and considered the certificate of urgency, the ex parte chamber summons, the statutory statement and the verifying affidavit together with the annexures,” Justice Musyoka said in his ruling.

KIM moved to court on April 22, a day after filing an urgent application seeking to overturn TVETA’s directive.

The regulator’s decision, issued on April 20, had ordered the closure of KIM campuses and the invalidation of certificates issued since 2018 a move that triggered anxiety among thousands of current and former students.

In its application, the institute argued that the decision was unlawful and asked the court to intervene through judicial review orders, including certiorari and prohibition, to stop its implementation.

“The honourable court is pleased to grant leave to apply for judicial review to quash the decision of the respondent to revoke the applicant’s accreditation,” KIM’s application read.