The Ministry of Education has given students more time to apply for Higher Education Loans and scholarships.
The new deadline is October 7, 2023. Education CS Ezekiel Machogu made this announcement in a statement to the media on Tuesday.
The extension is aimed at helping 112,468 students who haven’t applied for these loans yet.
As of September 5, a total of 156,532 students have already applied for University Fund scholarships and High Education Loans Board (HELB) loans.
However, this is only 60% of the students placed by Kenya Universities and Colleges Central Placement Service (KUCCPS) based on their KCSE 2022 performance.
To simplify the application process, the government has removed the need for a National ID for students below the age of 18.
CS Machogu said, “The Ministry has accordingly directed the Higher Education Loan Board (HELB) to review its portal to ensure all the 2,000 students yet to attain the age of 18 to apply for HELB loans.”
“The Universities Fund and Higher Education Loans Board have been directed to put in place measures to commence immediate and speedy processing of scholarships and bursaries for all students who have already applied.
Thereafter, the agencies will ensure the processing and disbursement exercise of scholarships and loans is conducted on a continuing basis.”
Additionally, the Education Ministry has instructed universities to allow enough time for first-year students to report to school, ensuring that no students are denied admission due to fee payment issues.
“Where universities have already commenced admission of First Years, measures must be in place to ensure students are not turned away for failure to pay school fees as the Government processes their funds applications,” CS Machogu added.
CS Machogu reassured that no student would miss school because of a lack of fees.
Vulnerable and extremely needy students will receive full government funding through scholarships.
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