The Higher Education Students’ Loans and Grants Board says it has recovered K1.24 billion during the previous financial year, the highest since its inception in 2015.
The board’s executive director Prince Phwetekere attributed the development to collaborative efforts from former beneficiaries and employers who facilitated loan repayments.
He said: “The board is pleased to inform the general public that it has achieved a record high loan recovery of K1.24 billion during the 2024/25 financial year.
“This indicates an increase of 65 percent in the annual recoveries compared to the 2023/24 financial year, during which K748.6 million was recovered.”
Phwetekere said in an interview on Wednesday that the board surpassed its recovery target of K1 billion.
“For 2025/26 fiscal year, we are committed to recovering K1.5 billion. At the beginning of every financial year, we make a commitment on how much we can manage to recover in the following financial year,” he said.
Civil Society Education Coalition executive director Benedicto Kondowe welcomed the development, but decried that the Loans Board was lagging behind on recoveries when compared to disbursements.
“The record-high loan recovery of K1.24 billion is a positive step toward building a sustainable higher education financing system as it reflects improved collaboration with employers,” he said.
An education expert Limbani Nsapato said the board needs to make efforts in collection of matured loans from former beneficiaries.
