By Obiabin Onukwugha
The Managing Director/CEO, Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND), Akintunde Sawyerr, has stated that the federal government has disbursed over N80billion to Nigerian institutions on its students loans initiative.
Sawyer revealed this at a two-day Renewed Hope Student Leaders Engagement, organized by the Office of the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Students Engagement in partnership with the Rivers State Government, at the University of Port Harcourt, on Friday.
According to Sawyer, the fund has received over 745,000 applications, while over 400,000 has benefitted. “So far we have over 745,000 Nigerians who have applied for this loan, out of this number, we have over 400,000 students who are benefiting from this loan. They have their school fees paid at tertiary level and some of them who have applied for upkeep are receiving N20,000 per month, per session. So far we have disbursed over N80billion to Nigerian institutions and Nigerians who are benefiting from the loan. We are receiving applications. In the last 24 hours we had 2,700 applications. We are processing them,” he said.
The NELFUND boss stated that the original law was repealed and re-enacted and one of the key components was that this scheme can be funded with non-governmental money. “In other words, people who want to contribute to the fund from outside government, whether they are philanthropists, general donors, NGOs, people with special interest in education, they can bring their money into that fund for it to be dedicated to the provision of loans or even grants, if they want, to the students,” he said
The NELFUND boss informed that there are two loans that applicants can apply for, the first is the institutional loan and the second loan is student upkeep, adding that the loans are interest free.
He further pointed out that there is no obligation to pay the loan until after two years of completion of NYSC and even then it is the employer who has an obligation to go to the data base to check if the employee has a loan or not and that if they have a loan the employer is to deduct ten per cent with the permission of the loanee from their income to send to the NELFUND. “If the payment is not complete and you lost your job the payment stops. The only exception is that if you have your own business and you are paying yourself a salary you are obliged to put the business or company that you set up to make those payments back to NELFUND,” he stated.
In his address, the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Students Engagement, Hon Asefon Dayo, revealed that the event is a deliberate and strategic initiative to strengthen the bridge between government and students, close communication gaps, and create a vibrant platform where campus leaders can interact directly with policymakers and key stakeholders in the education and youth sector.
“Our mission is clear, to engage student leaders meaningfully, inform them about the far-reaching reforms of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu in education and youth development, and hear from them directly. By doing this, we work towards building a more inclusive, impactful, and prosperous future for Nigerian students,” he said.
He mentioned that the launch of the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND) was to make education accessible and affordable, noting that the scheme has significantly reduced the number of students dropping out of tertiary institutions every year.
Dayo also stated that the President has approved the allocation of Funds to 15 school bot college of Education, polytechnic and University to create innovation hubs and entrepreneurship center, to provide core labs/workstation to cover electronic Lab, 3D printing Lab Leser Technology Lab, production Design lab, Robotics and coding, Artificial intelligence, among others.
He added that initiatives by the present administration include; increased funding for tertiary institutions, total attention to digital and vocational skills training for young Nigerians, renewable energy projects lighting up our campuses, ehabilitation of medical schools, introduction of the Students Industrial Work Experience, grant provided for both financial support and practical exposure to students.
The SSA on Student Engagement to the president tasked the students to make good use of the opportunity the event has presented to them, share the knowledge, inspire peers, and ensure every student regardless of background or location benefits from these opportunities. He also thanked the Sole Administrator of Rivers State, Vice Admiral (Rtd.) Ibok-Ete Ekwe Ibas, Sole Administrator of Rivers State, for his unwavering support that made this event possible.