CS Ogamba Sets Urgent Three-Week Deadline to Resolve Student Funding Errors
The Ministry of Education is currently facing a significant crisis with its new university funding model, as it works to resolve placement errors impacting nearly 13,000 students.
The crisis stems from widespread misclassification and data inaccuracies that have disrupted the funding process.
Education Cabinet Secretary Julius Migos Ogamba announced on Friday, August 23, that 12,958 students had applied for re-categorization under the new model.
The Ministry aims to complete this correction process within three weeks, while the application portal will stay open until December 31 to allow for continuous appeals and adjustments.
This intervention follows a report by Geoffrey Monari, CEO of the University Fund, who revealed that 127,000 scholarship loan applications have already been processed.
Monari indicated that student appeals are under review, and once these are processed, universities will be instructed to update family contribution data on the portal accordingly.
Misclassification and Tool Limitations
The situation is complicated by significant limitations in the classification tool used for determining university funding, which led to the misplacement of about 5 percent of the 113,000 students under the government scheme.
The Ministry admitted that these inaccuracies are a result of a flawed Means Testing Instrument (MTI) and discrepancies in the data provided by applicants.
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Head of Public Service Felix Koskei attributed the misclassification issue to fraudulent declarations of family income by students.
Many students, in an attempt to receive more government aid, reported income figures far below their actual earnings. During the National Research Festival in Nairobi, Koskei revealed that many students declared parental incomes below Ksh20,000, but verification efforts uncovered dishonesty.
Documents presented to Parliament supported Koskei’s claims, revealing widespread inconsistencies in the information submitted by applicants.
The Ministry’s report detailed numerous challenges in the classification model, especially in identifying the number of dependents—a critical factor in determining funding needs.
The Ministry’s reliance on the National Education Management Information System (Nemis) and the Higher Education Loans Board (HELB) for verifying student data exposed significant gaps.
Errors and New Developments
Students who did not apply through the Kenya Universities and Colleges Central Placement Service (KUCCPS) or who were not listed with HELB encountered data entry errors, worsening the problem.
To address these issues, the Ministry is developing a new virtual learners’ register called the Kenya Management Information System (Kemis), intended to close existing data gaps.
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Additionally, universities have implemented a screening process to verify the accuracy of funding band results. Students are advised to check their loan and scholarship awards on the Higher Education Funding (HEF) portal.
The report also highlighted errors in how universities communicated funding categories to students, with some being placed in lower funding bands than their financial circumstances warranted due to limited funding.
CS Ogamba Sets Urgent Three-Week Deadline to Resolve Student Funding Errors
