NAIROBI,Kenya Aug 21 – The Universities Fund has received ISO 9001:2015 recertification from the Kenya Bureau of Standards (KEBS), with officials saying the quality management standards will be critical as the institution expands its role in financing higher education.

📻 Breaking It Down

Universities Fund Acting Chief Executive Officer Dr Edwin Wanyonyi said the recertification was more than an administrative achievement, describing it as a reaffirmation of the Fund’s commitment to transparency, accountability and continuous improvement in the management of university financing.

Wanyonyi said the certification provides assurance to students, universities, the Government, taxpayers and development partners that the Fund has systems capable of managing its growing responsibilities.

“ISO certification is fundamentally about trust,” Wanyonyi said, noting that students must be assured that their applications and funding are handled through transparent and reliable systems, while universities require predictable and accountable funding processes.

📌 What You Need to Know

The Fund administers Government scholarships under the Student-Centred Funding Model, with financial need serving as a key factor in determining scholarship support for eligible students placed in public universities.

Wanyonyi said the growing number of students qualifying for university education had increased the pressure on the Fund to maintain efficient systems.

He noted that 270,715 candidates attained the minimum university entry grade of C+ and above in the 2025 KCSE examination, up from 246,391 in 2024.

This compares with 62,581 students who were eligible to join universities in 2017, highlighting the sharp increase in demand for higher education financing.

The Fund reached 408,879 public university students through scholarships over the three financial years to 2025/2026, with the number of beneficiaries rising from 118,153 in 2023/2024 to 253,042 in 2024/2025 and 408,879 in 2025/2026.

For the 2026/2027 financial year, the Fund projects about 608,879 scholarship beneficiaries.

📰 Source: Capital FM Kenya