NAIROBI — Kenyans owe the Higher Education Loans Board (HELB) KSh.40 billion in unpaid student loans dating back more than two decades, according to a statement by HELB Chief Executive Officer Geoffrey Monari.
Monari, speaking on Tuesday, disclosed that 51,594 borrowers who graduated more than 20 years ago still hold a combined KSh.8 billion. Another 23,786 individuals, who completed their studies between 12 and 17 years ago, owe KSh.6.6 billion.
The largest group of defaulters, approximately 230,000 graduates from the last 11 years, has accumulated an unpaid balance of about KSh.26 billion.
“These borrowers are in between jobs and are still settling down,” Monari explained, suggesting that unstable employment remains a major barrier to repayment.
According to Monari, repayment varies widely by profession. Only 11 percent of registered accountants are making repayments. Of 20,420 accountants in the system, just over 2,000 have cleared their loans.
“We have 18,000 accountants who are not paying. These are professionals operating private accounting firms,” Monari said.
In the medical field, only 18 percent of practicing doctors are repaying their loans. HELB records show 2,115 are currently paying, while 11,701 have defaulted.
Teachers show the highest compliance. Out of the borrowers in that profession, 44,000 are actively repaying their loans, and around 3,500 have defaulted.
The legal profession fares worse. HELB issued loans to over 23,000 law graduates, yet only 2,644 have repaid their balances.
“Out of 24,883 graduated engineers, only 1,594 have cleared their loans and 894 are making payments,” Monari noted.
HELB blames informal sector employment for the difficulty in tracing defaulters. Many graduates work outside structured payroll systems, limiting HELB’s ability to track them or enforce deductions.
Currently, HELB charges an annual interest rate of 4 percent on loans, with repayment expected to begin after graduation.
The board recently blacklisted 71,806 individuals for failing to honor repayment agreements. Monari emphasized that the outstanding KSh.40 billion could support tuition for about 289,000 students in public universities and colleges for one academic year.
Monari’s remarks highlight growing pressure on HELB to recover funds needed to sustain higher education funding in the country.
