The Higher Education Loans Board (HELB) has scrapped a mandatory Ksh1,000 fee for compliance certificate fee for non-beneficiaries.
This is in a bid to help job-seeking Kenyans scout for jobs in the public sector with much ease after complains that the fee was a hurdle preventing many from securing jobs.
Charles Ringera, the HELB CEO on Thursday in a public notice maintained that the fee was “punitive” especially to jobless Kenyans who were forced non-beneficiaries of HELB.
“HELB has been issuing compliance certificates to non-beneficiaries of student loans at a fee of Ksh. 1,000 to defray the cost of the certificate and other administrative expenses,” read the notice.
“However, during various stakeholder engagements where HELB seeks feedback on citizen service delivery, it has repeatedly come to our attention that the charges for non-loanee compliance certificate are perceived to be punitive, especially to the many unemployed youths who did not benefit from the student loans.”
The HELB CEO offered the decision was carefully considered by the board and unemployment, underemployment and economic turmoil caused by COVID-19 across the corporate world informed its final decision.
Ringera said the massive layoffs and retrenchment across the country since the pandemic struck has made life unbearable for everyone but is more hurting to the unemployed.
“Given the foregoing issues raised by Kenyans, HELB has stopped charging Ksh.1,000 for issuance of the compliance certificate with effect from July 15, 2020,” he said.
“The HELB Compliance Certificates will now be free of charge and can be accessed from the HELB website as well as the e-Citizen portal.”
This, he said, will motivate jobless youths to seek employment in the public sector where a compliance certificate from HELB is mandatory.