Education Cabinet Secretary Amina Mohammed announced that the Higher Educations Loans Board (HELB) will be converted to Tertiary Education Funding Corporation.
Addressing journalists on Thursday, the Education CS asked students who receive HELB loans to acquire smart cards to access their loans.
Additionally, CS Amina announced that loan defaulters will receive a hundred percent waiver on penalties until June 30, 2018.
In 2017, students scrambled for the Ksh3.2 billion higher education loan as the agency processed applications from 100,000 applicants. However, only 72,000 students were to be considered for loans this year.
[caption caption="CS Amina Mohammed"]
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The Government had promised to double the allocation to the loans to ensure needy bright students in public and private universities pursue studies.
Speaking during a graduation ceremony in Mount Kenya University Deputy President William Ruto assured students that the Government will increase the allocation to HELB from the current Ksh7.5 billion to Ksh15 billion annually.
DP Ruto acknowledged that HELB faced challenges in reclaiming money from beneficiaries and further revealed the Government would put in place modalities to ensure that no student misses out on the funds.
In January, University of Nairobi students went on a rampage protesting delays of their higher education loans.
The University's student council maintained that learners were suffering in their hostels while others were stuck at home with unpaid fees arrears due to delayed remittance.
Nairobi police commander Japhet Koome castigated the students' actions after they lit bonfires along the State House road and inconvenienced motorists.
[caption caption="CS Amina Mohammed"]
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