Thousands of UNZA Students Receive HELSB Loans for 2025/26
The Higher Education Loans and Scholarships Board (HELSB) has awarded 3,926 student loans to first-year students at the University of Zambia (UNZA) for the 2025/2026 academic year.
A total of 5,798 applications were received, of which 4,929 (85%) met the eligibility criteria. The remaining 869 applicants (15%) were deemed ineligible due to reasons including completion of Grade 12 before 2020, incomplete or incorrect documentation, exceeding the age limit of 26 years, accumulating more than 30 points, or having already been awarded a loan at another university.
The geographic distribution of eligible applicants shows 2,477 students (43%) from urban areas, 1,544 (26%) from peri-urban areas, and 1,777 (31%) from rural areas. HELSB also received 29 applications from students with disabilities, all of whom were awarded loans.
The awards were carefully allocated to ensure balance across provinces, with priority given to students demonstrating both academic merit and high socio-economic vulnerability.
Currently, HELSB is supporting 17,378 students at UNZA and remains committed to promoting equitable access to higher education for students from all backgrounds.
This was stated by Chiselwa Kawanda, Manager Corporate Affairs, HELSB.
