Vice-Chancellor
Lt Gen David K C Tarus, MGH CBS ‘ndc’ (K) ‘cgsc’ (USA)‘psc’ (K)
Vice-Chancellor
Lieutenant General David Kimaiyo Chemwaina Tarus was born on 31 July 1968 in Uasin Gishu County, Kenya. He was enlisted into the then Kenya Military Forces for military training as an Officer Cadet on 11 May 1988. He trained at the Armed Forces Training College (AFTC) and later Commissioned as an Officer on 11 August 1989. After completion of his Cadet training, he was posted to 75 Artillery Battalion (Air Defence) in Embakasi as a Troop Commander. He served in other various appointments and rose through the key command roles in the same Unit including the Unit Intelligence Officer (IO), Adjutant (Adjt), Battery Captain (BK), Battery Commander (BC) and later on as the Battalion Second-in-Command (Bn 2IC) thereby building a strong foundation in leadership, discipline and operational command that would define his distinguished military service.
For the last 38 years of his military career, Lieutenant General Tarus has held a wide range of Command, Staff and Instructional related appointments in various Kenya Defence Forces establishments.
Notable, he has served as an Instructor at International Peace Support Training Centre (IPSTC), Joint Command and Staff College for Grade 2 Staff Course and as a Senior Directing Staff (SDS) at Joint Warfare College (JWC).
In Staff, he served as Staff Officer at Division Headquarters in Western Command as Staff Officer II in charge of Operations and Training and as the General Officer Commanding (GOC). In the Eastern Command he served as the Colonel Operations (Col GS).
At the Service, he worked in Headquarter Kenya Army (HQ KA) as Staff Officer II Operations and Logistics, Staff Officer I for Systems Branch, Deputy Army Commander (DAC) and Commander of the Kenya Army (Comd KA). In Defence Headquarters (DHQ) he served as a Staff Officer I in charge of Training.
In Command Lt Gen Tarus was appointed the Deputy Commander Artillery Brigade from 31 July 2015 - 28 July 2016 and later on as the Commander Artillery Brigade from 06 May 2019 – 30 December 2020.
He was the Commandant Joint Warfare College from 31 December 2020 – 19 July 2022. From the College, he rose to become the General Officer Commanding Western Command from 20 July 2022 – 27 April 2023 and Deputy Army Commander from 28 April 2023 – 07 March 2024.
He was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant General on 08 March 2024 and appointed the Commander Kenya Army where he served and saw the operational readiness, strategic planning and professional development of the Kenya Army. On 27 June 2025, the University Chancellor through the Defence Council appointed him as the Vice Chancellor (VC) of the National Defence University - Kenya (NDU-K) where he is leading the country’s premier defence and security studies institution.
Lieutenant General Tarus in his military career spanning more than three decades attended various military courses relevant to the various senior strategic appointments and responsibilities that he held as follows:
- Basic Military Training - Armed Forces Training School, Lanet 1988/89.
- Artillery Young Officers Basic Course – School of Artillery, Isiolo 1989/90.
- Physical Training Officers Course – Armed Forces Training College, Lanet 1990.
- Platoon Commanders Course – School of Infantry, Isiolo 1992.
- Computer Application Course - Armed Forces Training College, Lanet 1993.
- Grade Three Staff Course - Armed Forces Training College, Lanet 1994.
- Battery Commanders Course - School of Artillery Isiolo, 1995.
- Junior Command Course - School of Combat, Lanet 2000.
- Advance Air Defence Captains Career Course – Ft Bliss, Texas, USA.
- Forward Observation Officers Course - School of Artillery, Isiolo, 2004.
- Grade Two Staff Course - Defence Staff College, Kenya 2006.
- Command and General Staff Course - Ft Leavenworth, Kansas, USA 2009/10.
- Senior Command Course - Joint Warfare College – Lanet 2013.
- Grade One Staff Course - National Defence College – Kenya 2016/17.
Education has been a defining pillar of Lt Gen Tarus’ military journey. He holds a Master of Science from the United States of America, Ft Leavenworth from July 2009 to June 2010, a Bachelor of Military Science from Egerton University Kenya 2016 to 2019, a Diploma in Strategic Studies and a Diploma in International Relations both from the University of Nairobi in 2005/06 and 2016/17 respectively. He also has a Certificate in Military Science from Egerton University in 2003. He received his O-level education from 1982 to 1985 and A-Level education from 1986 to 1987 both from Uasin Gishu High School, Eldoret. Currently, he is pursuing Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Strategic Studies and Disaster Management at Masinde Muliro University of Science and Technology.
Lt Gen Tarus has served in the United Nations Peacekeeping Missions in various parts of the world which include the United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO) from 1996-1997 and United Nations and African Mission in Darfur (UNAMID) from 2007-2008 as it transitioned from African Mission in Sudan (AMIS).
In recognition for his distinguished and exemplary service, His Excellency, the President and Commander-in-Chief of the Kenya Defence Forces awarded him several national honours and medals the highest being Moran of the Order of the Golden Heart (MGH) and Chief of the Order of the Burning Spear (CBS).
He is happily married to Monicah, blessed with four boys and has two grandchildren.