The Higher Education Loans Board (HELB) has told loan beneficiaries to retain the same mobile‑money number throughout their studies to prevent delayed or failed disbursements.

HELB’s statement stresses that the mobile‑money number registered at the time of application must remain unchanged, and any change should be promptly updated in the board’s records.

Students who change their mobile‑money numbers without notifying HELB risk experiencing payment delays.

HELB’s chief executive Ekwee Ethuro estimates that up to 40 % of returned loan funds are due to incorrect or outdated beneficiary details.

The warning comes as more than 140,000 university and TVET students face loan allocation shortfalls and cash shortages.

First‑year students have also encountered delays linked to late national ID issuance and mismatches between examination index numbers and details on the Higher Education Financing portal.

Students experiencing payment delays should log into the HEF portal to verify that their mobile‑money number, bank account and identification details are correct.

If any information has changed, beneficiaries are instructed to update their profiles on the portal before the next disbursement cycle.

When funds are returned because of incorrect details, HELB typically sends an SMS notification and reprocesses the payment once the correct information is supplied.

Students with persistent issues are advised to visit the nearest Huduma Centre or a HELB office for assistance.