The government has released at least Ksh 3.32 billion for First and Second Year university students under the 2024/25 academic year.
In a statement on Tuesday, February 4, 2025, Education Cabinet Secretary Julius Migos Ogamba said the funds, which were disbursed through the Higher Education Loans Board (HELB), cover student upkeep loans ranging from Ksh40,000 to Ksh 60,000 per student.
“The government disbursed a total of Ksh3.32 Billion by 31st January, 2025, for First and Second Year students during the 2024/2025 Academic Year. The disbursements, made through the Higher Education Loans Board, cover students’ upkeep. The upkeep loans, which are a critical component for fostering student welfare, range from Ksh40,000 to Ksh60,000 per student,” Ogamba stated.
“The latest disbursements are part of the funds that had already been appropriated in July 2024, in the context of the current Financial Year’s budgetary and appropriation framework.”
This comes days after University of Nairobi (UoN) students stormed the loans’ board offices at Anniversary Towers on Monday, February 3, 2024, protesting delays in loan disbursements.
HELB speaks
In its defence, the loans’ board attributed the delays to a High Court ruling on December 20, 2025, which declared the new university funding model illegal and unconstitutional.
“The disbursement delays stem from a court decision that halted the implementation of the new funding model, forcing HELB to temporarily revert to the old system until the legal matter is resolved,” King’ori Ndegwa, HELB’s lending manager, said.
Following the ruling, the government has been forced to revert to the old funding model awaiting a decision on an appeal against the High Court’s suspension of the new framework.
This means that the affected students will be financed under the differentiated unit cost model, the same model used for third- and fourth-year students.
“It’s illegal, but we will now pay HELB using the old model,” Ndegwa said.
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