New tool to guide banding for university funding

Universities Fund Chief Executive Officer Geoffrey Monari. [File, Standard]

Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Universities Fund Geoffrey Monari has blamed false information, laxity and poor network infrastructure to woes that led to wrong banding of university students.

He said the re-categorisation process will continue to rely heavily on the accuracy of the information provided by applicants’ on their socio-economic background.

This will include affirmative action considerations, socio-demographic factors, and family education expenses that will all play a role in determining the final funding bands.

“Currently, food security is key in this country and those students taking agriculture-related courses have a high chance of falling in the first band,” said Mr Monari.

Speaking to the Sunday Standard, Monari added that students from families with parents living with disabilities, chronic diseases, as well as extended family members are also classified as needy.

He said since the opening of the Higher Education Portal, 134,029 applications for loans and scholarships have been received. Of these, 127,591 have been approved, with students being placed into various financing bands based on their needs.

This banding system is designed to ensure that funding is allocated fairly, with a focus on the most financially vulnerable students.

However, Monari said not all students were satisfied with their initial placement.

Around 12,000 appeals had been submitted by students who believed they had been unfairly categorised.

"We have received many appeals from Kenyans who are concerned about the bands they were placed in," Monari said, adding that the fund had already reviewed nearly 1,000 appeals, adjusting the funding bands for those found to be in genuine need.

He said the multi-agency approach was part of the government’s broader effort to enhance transparency, efficiency, and accountability in the university financing system.

“We validated the information given by students with other institutions. 70 per cent of the applicants registered zero income. However, when we validated we got they are earning more,” he said.

The new collaboration with the National Educational Management Information System (NEMIS), Kenya Revenue Authority, and the Ministry of Interior, aims to enhance transparency in the process.

He urged learners who missed on the correct banding to log into the Higher Education Financing portal to reapply.