The Nigerian Education Loan Fund, NELFUND, announced on Monday, August 5, that it has successfully disbursed N20,000 monthly stipends for July to 20,371 students from six tertiary institutions......See Full Story>>.....See Full Story>>
In a statement released in Abuja, the Fund listed the institutions as Bayero University Kano, Federal University Dutsin-Ma, University of Ilorin, University of Benin, University of Ibadan, and the University of Maiduguri.
The statement, signed by NELFUND’s Director of Finance, Ibom Uche, mentioned that the Fund is preparing to start the payment process for students from about 55 additional tertiary institutions.
“It is anticipated that this will be concluded within the next two weeks as the fund is committed to ensuring that all eligible students receive their stipends promptly,” the statement reads in part.
The statement also mentioned that President Bola Tinubu pledged an additional N50 billion to support student loans on Sunday, August 4.
“It is noteworthy that the President only Sunday committed a further 50 billion Naira from recovered proceeds of crime.”
The student loan scheme is President Bola Tinubu’s flagship initiative in the education sector.
Just a month into his presidency, Tinubu signed the Access to Higher Education Act, establishing a legal framework for providing loans to financially disadvantaged Nigerians to help them pay for their education at tertiary institutions in Nigeria.
This law, re-enacted earlier this year, led to the creation of the NELFUND.
NELFUND is responsible for managing all aspects of loan requests, grants, disbursement, and recovery.
According to the Act, the Fund will be financed from multiple sources and will also engage in other productive activities.