Kenya to track down higher education loan defaulters
Nairobi, Kenya (PANA) - Kenyan authorities have begun tracking down 74,000 university graduates who have failed to clear higher education loan dished out to them by the government.
Education Cabinet Secretary Amb Amina Mohammed disclosed this while speaking at the launch of the Higher Education Loans Board (HELB) five-year strategic plan in Nairobi Wednesday.
She said the defaulters, who would be traced through their work places, would be tracked down by law enforcement agencies.
“We will partner with the agencies to track down the defaulters. We want them to become responsible citizens who pay their debts,” she stated.
The minister said time was up for the defaulters to clear the higher education loans operated by the state-run HELB, adding that there were several ways of tracking the defaulters, among them graduates working in money transfer enterprises.
In Kenya, individual details are captured in several ways, including acquisition and registration of a sim (simulated identification module) card.
According to the minister, tracking and compelling the defaulters to clear their loans will help HELB boost its kitty and therefore help in spreading the service to others in need.
The HELB strategic plan 2019-2023 has been aligned to the government's Big Four Agenda and Vision 2030, namely affordable housing; food security; manufacturing; and universal health.
Mohammed said due to rapid expansion of higher education, the Ministry of Education was reviewing its education financing policy to make it more predictable and sustainable.
-0- PANA DJ/RA 20Feb2019
