High Court to Decide University Funding Model’s Fate on Monday.
The High Court will deliver a ruling on Monday regarding the university funding model, which faces legal challenges seeking its removal. This decision comes midway through the 2024-2025 academic year, potentially shaping the future of higher education financing in Kenya.
The petition was filed last year by the Kenya Human Rights Commission (KHRC), Elimu Bora Working Group, Boaz Waruku, and the Students’ Caucus.
They named the Attorney-General, the Cabinet Secretary for Education, the Higher Education Loans Board (Helb), the Trustees of the Universities Fund Kenya, and the Kenya Universities and Colleges Central Placement Service (KUCCPS) as respondents.
The case, currently before Justice Chacha Mwita, resulted in conservatory orders being issued on October 3, 2024, temporarily halting the model’s implementation.
The petitioners argue that the funding model, introduced in 2023, is unconstitutional, violates the right to education under economic and social rights, and stems from an illegal directive by President William Ruto.
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According to their petition, the Variable Scholarship and Loan Funding Model is arbitrary, undefined, expensive, and fails to safeguard vulnerable members of society.
Features of the University Funding Model
The model was recommended by the Presidential Working Party on Education Reforms (PWPER) as part of broader education sector reforms. Under the model, universities declare the costs of academic programmes before students apply for placement and funding.
The Kenya Universities and Colleges Central Placement Service (KUCCPS) allocates students to programmes, with funding provided through a combination of loans from Helb and scholarships from the Universities Fund.
Students are grouped into five bands based on their family income and other economic variables, with additional applications required for upkeep funds.
Unlike the previous system, which automatically funded all qualified students, the new approach demands separate applications for both tuition and maintenance support.
Notably, students already enrolled in public universities and technical and vocational education training (TVET) institutions before the model’s implementation were exempted.
Government’s Response and Challenges
In response to the petition, the government insists the model is constitutional and was implemented after adequate public participation. The government claims it promotes transparency in financing tertiary education and aligns with principles of public fiscal responsibility.
In September, President Ruto appointed a committee to review the model and provide recommendations within eight weeks. However, the committee has faced setbacks and has yet to submit a progress report.
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The fate of the funding model, now in its second year of implementation, remains uncertain as the High Court prepares to issue its ruling. The outcome will determine whether the contentious model continues or is scrapped, affecting thousands of students and the higher education sector at large.
High Court to Decide University Funding Model’s Fate on Monday.
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