The Chief Executive Officer of the Higher Education Loans Board (HELB), Geoffrey Monari, has announced that the board successfully recovered Ksh5.21 billion during the 2024/2025 financial year. This achievement was made possible by tracking down more than 17,000 individuals who had defaulted on their student loans.
Monari appeared before the National Assembly’s Education Committee on Monday, July 14, where he explained that the recoveries were the result of collaborative efforts between HELB and various government institutions.
He revealed that the agency used digital tracking methods by accessing data from the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) and working closely with employers to identify those who had failed to repay their loans.
Additionally, for loan defaulters who had passed away, HELB partnered with the Civil Registration Services. This cooperation enabled the agency to verify deceased individuals and led to the cancellation of Ksh347 million from the accounts of loanees who were confirmed dead.
Monari gave this explanation after Members of Parliament questioned the agency’s performance in recovering loans, especially considering that about Ksh15 billion is still outstanding from graduates. He told the committee that many young people face challenges in repaying their loans due to unemployment or underemployment.
“Our research shows that it takes around six years for some graduates to secure employment. Even those who are working may not be earning enough to start repaying their loans,” Monari stated.
One of the lawmakers raised concerns about the growing number of students in need and asked how HELB determines who receives financial support. “With so many students going unfunded, how do you select who qualifies for a loan? We need to increase loan recovery so that more deserving students can benefit,” the MP noted.
To deal with this growing challenge of loan default, Monari said that HELB is looking into introducing an income-contingent repayment (ICR) model.
This system would allow loanees to pay back their loans based on their earnings. HELB is also considering more flexible repayment methods such as weekly contributions, which would especially help people working in the informal sector.
The MPs also voiced concerns about the lack of transparency in bursary distribution and questioned HELB’s proposal to centralize bursary information under its system.
Mandera South MP, Abdul Haro, pointed out that past attempts to consolidate bursaries through the Ministry of Education did not work effectively and failed to reach everyone who needed them.
In response, Monari clarified that the plan is not to merge bursary funds but simply to centralize the data. “We are only looking to bring information together so that students do not apply for financial support from HELB, county governments, and banks without disclosing it. This will help prevent duplication and misuse of funds,” he explained.
Despite these challenges, Members of Parliament praised HELB for the improvements made in automating their services and introducing self-service portals. However, they urged the agency to do more to fix issues with the eCitizen platform and make it easier for Kenyans living abroad to repay their loans.
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