The Chief Executive Officer of the Higher Education Loans Board (HELB), Geoffrey Monari, has revealed that more than 50,000 graduates who completed their studies over 20 years ago have never started repaying their student loans.
He called it a growing crisis that threatens the sustainability of education financing in Kenya.
According to Monari, only 2,115 doctors are repaying their loans, while 11,701 are not. Out of 24,803 engineers, just 894 are currently repaying, and only 1,594 have finished paying.
Among more than 23,000 lawyers who received loans, only 2,644 have repaid. Of the accountants, just 11 per cent (2,420) are paying, while 18,000 have defaulted.
Teachers lead the way in repayment, with 44,000 currently paying, and only about 3,500 not servicing their loans.
Monari noted that most defaulters work in the private sector, where formal employment is less common.
“Kenyans in the private sector, especially those in private practice, are where our challenge lies,” he said.
Breakdown of money owed
“From our figures, students who graduated over 20 years ago, 51,594 of them, are holding Ksh8 billion and have not started paying,” Monari said during a TV interview on Tuesday, June 17, 2025.
“Another 23,786 who completed their studies between 12 and 17 years ago still owe HELB Ksh6.6 billion.”
Monari explained that while younger graduates (those out of school between one and 11 years) are still finding their footing in the job market, the issue is more serious with older professionals.
“You can imagine a graduate of 20 years who has not started paying. That’s what we’re dealing with,” he said.
To address the crisis, HELB plans to take tougher measures.
“We are calling on defaulters to come forward and repay their loans. But for those who don’t, we will list them with Credit Reference Bureaus (CRBs) to affect their credit ratings,” Monari warned.
He also revealed plans to collaborate with professional bodies to make HELB clearance certificates mandatory before license renewals.
“Just like you need a HELB certificate to be appointed a cabinet secretary, professionals should also have one to practise,” he said.
Kenneth Mwenda
Kenneth Mwenda is a digital writer with over five years of experience. He graduated in February 2022 with a Bachelor of Commerce in Finance from The Co-operative University of Kenya. He has written news and feature stories for platforms such as Construction Review Online, Sports Brief, Briefly News, and Criptonizando. In 2023, he completed a course in Digital Investigation Techniques with AFP. He joined K24 Digital in May 2025. For inquiries, he can be reached at [email protected].
