Airlift programme that crashed with dreams of Uasin Gishu youth

Parents, students and Uasin Gishu leaders during a meeting in Eldoret on August 7,2023 over finland and Canada education scandal. [Christopher Kipsang, Standard]

When high-ranking officials spent months persuading parents and youth in Uasin Gishu to pursue overseas education opportunities, hopes were high among families in the region.

With sweet tongues, they convinced hundreds of parents to enrol their children in postgraduate, graduate, and diploma courses in Finland and Canada.

Parents from the county’s six sub-counties embraced the idea, initially advertised as paid scholarships, but it later became a burden to families.

Delays in travelling abroad plagued the programme months after parents had paid fees for their children.

Parents, who sold land and other assets to send their children to foreign universities, accused some leaders of betrayal, as the promise of European and Canadian universities turned into a mirage for some of them.

After months of street protests, investigative agencies intervened in August last year, as parents who felt defrauded pushed for refunds of college fees paid through a trust fund.

Amidst the controversy, 22 students had joined various Finnish universities and colleges under the county programme, while many others were demanding refunds.

On 16 August 2023, President William Ruto urged leaders to refund the money paid by affected parents and students. This verbal directive was issued even as State agencies launched investigations into the matter.

Edward Kiptek, an affected parent, said that despite the President’s call, the county government and those behind the initiative had turned a deaf ear to their plight.

“The students who left for Finland amidst the controversy had obtained visas months before the programme encountered difficulties. Most parents are no longer interested in the programme,” Kiptek said.

Another parent, David Saina, stated: “The President asked them to refund our money. They have defied him and remained silent on our plight. We are back on the streets, and they should prepare to refund us.”

There are claims that a number of parents who paid an average of Sh1.2 million for each Finland and Canada-bound student were refunded.

Frustrated parents alleged they had paid more than Sh950 million before the initiative became embroiled in controversy.

For two months, parents whose children had not travelled to Finnish institutions, despite paying fees ranging from Sh1.2 million to Sh1.5 million in the last three years, demanded answers for the delays.

In response, former Uasin Gishu Governor Jackson Mandago and his successor Jonathan Bii defended the initiative. However, the current county chief later distanced himself from the programme.

The matter is now in court, and investigations are ongoing, but many parents are counting huge losses.

Benjamin Cheboson, former Presbyterian University of East Africa student demonstrates along Eldoret-Kiplombe road in Eldoret Uasin Gishu County over missing school fees and airlift money for education studies in Finland. August 9, 2023. [Peter Ochieng, Standard]

Some private agents working with counties were also linking students to Finnish universities.

A student studying in Finland said he opted to disassociate from an overseas education agency after discovering that he could pay his fees directly to the university’s bank accounts.

“I was told before leaving Kenya that I could only pay my fees through an agency or the county trust fund account. They claimed Finnish universities did not accept direct payments. Upon reaching Finland, I found it was possible to deal directly with the institutions, so I cut ties with the agency that linked me to the university in Finland,” said the student, who has since completed his studies and is now working there.

In 2022, 110 students were stranded in Finland after the County Trust Fund allegedly delayed fee remittance to their universities, sparking outrage.

It took the intervention of a private agency to extricate the students from the troubled county-led programme.

Frustrated parents have abandoned the Uasin Gishu airlift programme and called on investigative agencies to expedite the probe and help them recover the money held in the Trust Fund account.

Under a new agreement with a private entity, parents of students in various Finnish universities and colleges opened an account with a local bank, where funds would be remitted to Finnish institutions.

“We had to find a way to salvage the situation, so we approached the private entity, which negotiated with the universities on our behalf,” said Mary Too, a parent of a student pursuing nursing at Tampere University of Applied Sciences, during the signing of the new agreement.

Another parent, Barnabas Murey, said parents of the 110 students who left the county programme were seeking the immediate release of Sh150,000 to each student linked to Finnish institutions.

Murey explained that aside from tuition and accommodation fees, the Sh150,000 per student had been paid to the Trust Fund account as an agency fee (Sh30,000 each), Sh55,000 (emergency fee), Sh30,000 (insurance), and Sh25,000 (accommodation deposit).

“Many parents paid school fees into the Trust Fund account, but they can’t access that money now because the account is under investigation. We have signed a deal with a private company so that our children can continue their studies,” he said.

Late last year, Uasin Gishu county officials met some 40 students enrolled in the programme.

“The airlift programme is still noble. Some students remain interested, although others are insisting on refunds,” an official said.

Mercy Cherono, who was heading to Laurea University of Applied Sciences to study nursing, said she was hopeful that she would begin her studies after nearly a year of waiting.

“I have waited for a long time, and securing my visa and receiving assurance from Laurea University that my fees and accommodation had been paid is a relief,” the student said.

She added: “I urge the current county administration to be transparent to regain trust.”

Cherono said Governor Bii had intervened by contacting the Finnish universities directly. “We hope the same will happen for our remaining colleagues.”

Another Finland-bound student, Mercy Chebet, said she had been waiting to join Laurea University for a year and seven months.

Chebet called on Uasin Gishu leaders to find a lasting solution to ensure students can continue their education without further delays.