Loans board turns to private sector to boost fund

Kenya’s Higher Education Loans Board is reaching out to the private sector and individuals in a bid to boost the value of its revolving fund. It hopes this will help increase its lending capacity, which has been hard hit by a sharp increase in the number of students enrolled in the country’s higher education institutions, writes Frankline Sunday for Standard Digital.

The board recently announced the launch of the Afya Elimu Fund, a joint partnership between the Higher Education Loans Board, or HELB, USAID, the Kenya Private Sector Alliance and government ministries. The public-private partnership hopes to raise Sh1.5 billion (US$17 million), which will go towards providing education loans for health studies.

According to HELB Chief Executive Officer Charles Ringera, the fund is realigning itself to respond to the increasing need for higher education financing. “Kenya has a shortage of health workers, and this puts at risk our ability to achieve Vision 2030 and the millennium development goals,” he said. As the state financier for higher education loans, the board will be leveraging its established lending machinery to disburse the Afya Elimu Fund.
Full report on the Standard Digital site