Universities have announced that new students will not be required to pay fees until a court resolves the case challenging the annulment of the new university funding model. This decision provides much-needed relief for thousands of students whose education was uncertain following the High Court’s declaration of the model as unconstitutional last December.
On Thursday, January 16, 2025, Professor Daniel Mugendi, Chairperson of the Vice-Chancellors’ Committee, clarified that the fee exemption would apply exclusively to first and second-year students. These students represent the first and second cohorts who benefited from the new university funding model, which the government introduced in May 2023.
Mugendi, who is also the Vice-Chancellor of Embu University, explained that this move aims to ensure uninterrupted studies for first and second-year students affected by the court ruling.
“For first years, we are not asking them to pay fees until the issue is resolved in court because they don’t even know how much they are supposed to pay,” he said during a media briefing in Nairobi.
Mugendi also revealed that the government had already allocated funding for first and second-year students, but the money cannot be disbursed by the Higher Education Loans Board (HELB) or the Universities Fund due to the court order.
The Vice-Chancellor clarified that self-sponsored first-year students would not benefit from this exemption, as they are not under government sponsorship. He further expressed concern that the court ruling had caused uncertainty in university education, noting that it failed to provide transition mechanisms to ensure continuity.
“We have gone back to court to challenge that ruling and requested the courts to grant us stay orders so that we can continue operating and enable students to pay their fees,” Mugendi stated. He explained that a temporary stay order would allow the government to address the issues the court identified in the university funding model.
Despite the challenges caused by the court ruling, Mugendi confirmed that the government had released capitation for third, fourth, fifth, and sixth-year students. “That funding is currently keeping universities operational because these students already have their upkeep from HELB in their accounts,” he added.
The Vice-Chancellor expressed optimism that the case would be resolved by next week, allowing funding agencies to release money to universities and students for upkeep, ensuring the smooth continuation of education for all.
