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Govt denies hiking varsity fees, says students paying as low as Sh5,000

PS for Higher Education Beatrice Inyangala  before the Senate's Education Committee on the matter of the new university funding model at Bunge Towers, Parliament, Nairobi. March 20th, 2025. (Elvis Ogina, Standard)

The government has dismissed allegations that it has increased university school fees, maintaining that it has reduced varsity fees to lower the cost of higher education.

Speaking in Malava Constituency, Principal Secretary for the State Department of Higher Education, Dr Beatrice Inyangala dismissed rumours and confusion going round that the government has increased school fees, insisting that the lowest school fee will be Sh5,000 and Sh75,000 as the highest amount per semester.

"As a ministry, we announced that the government is going to reduce varsity school fees, and I want to confirm here that without fear of contradiction that the government has reduced school fees and it has introduced subsidized school fees," said Inyangala.


She added, "As universities open across the country, I want to confirm that over 30,000 students have joined various universities and they have paid the subsidized school fees ranging between Sh5,000 to Sh75,000, depending on the cost of the program a student is taking."

Dr Inyangala added that the universities are implementing the new directive.

"This is the second week universities are opening, and I am receiving daily updates from the universities that the directive is being implemented successfully and that students are paying the capped school fees by the government," she said.

PS Inyangala said that there has been misinformation and disinformation around the admission letters and fee structure being sent to students by universities.

"There has been misinformation and disinformation around the admission letter, where parents did not know how much to pay for school fees, loans, and other expenses, and it created discomfort among parents. Right now, the communication is clear, the universities have released admission letters indicating money to pay, and right now, parents are just paying what is in the admission letter, and parents are now comfortable," said Inyangala.

Inyangala asked the universities to update their portal and systems to reflect the new subsidized fee.

Before the opening by universities, the move came as a relief, but quickly threw students and parents into uncertainty as they were unsure of the exact amount to pay after the universities failed to update their online portals to reflect the new rates.

Education Cabinet Secretary Julius Ogamba, in a circular dated 15 August, explained that student contributions would vary depending on the cost of the programme enrolled in and each student’s assessed financial need.

The Ministry of Education defended its position, urging universities to update their systems.

Ogamba acknowledged the delays but insisted that the reforms would ultimately ease the financial burden on families.