KUPPET demands clarity on University Funding and HELB

The Kenya Union of Post-Primary Education Teachers (KUPPET) is calling on the government to clarify on the recent court ruling concerning the university funding model.

Addressing the media on Wednesday, April 2, KUPPET emphasized that the Court of Appeal did not overturn the High Court's decision.

Union members expressed concerns about the uncertainty facing students set to join universities and colleges in May and September, citing widespread misinformation about the ruling.

“The Court of Appeal has not overturned Justice Chacha Mwita’s High Court judgment that declared this funding model unconstitutional, despite widespread misinformation suggesting otherwise,” one KUPPET member stated.

The teachers' union strongly criticized President William Ruto’s recent comments on the new funding model.

“We firmly reject President Ruto’s misleading claims of success regarding the government's efforts to enforce this flawed funding system, which directly misrepresents the court’s actual ruling,” one member stated.

The union also called on students to stay alert and document any difficulties they encounter under the new funding model.

Kenyan students must stay alert as the government continues pushing for the implementation of this exclusionary funding model, despite ongoing negotiations.

On April 1, the Higher Education Loans Board (HELB) and the Universities Fund (UF) invited students to submit feedback on the new university funding model before the April 4 deadline.

The two institutions stated that this call for public participation follows the Court of Appeal’s stay order on the implementation of the new funding system.

"UF and HELB therefore invite the public to submit their comments and memoranda on the Appeals mechanism. The public participation exercise will remain open until April 4, 2025, at 5 p.m.," the notice stated in part.

On March 25, the Court of Appeal issued a stay on a previous High Court ruling that had deemed the government's new university funding model unconstitutional.