Student Loan: FG to Begin Payment of N35 Billion to 70,000 Successful Applicants, Details Surface

• The Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND) has finalised plans to distribute N35 billion to 70,000 successful loan applicants
• Successful candidates can check the status of their applications through the agency’s portal, as confirmed by stakeholders
• The funds will be directly transferred to institutions’ bank accounts, covering tuition fees and other charges such as departmental and health insurance fees

FCT, Abuja - The Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND) has finalised arrangements to disburse N35 billion in tuition fees and monthly upkeep allowances to 70,000 applicants who have successfully secured the student loan.

Additionally, these successful applicants, students from federal government-owned tertiary institutions nationwide, were selected from a pool of 120,000 applicants as of Friday, June 21.

Major stakeholders confirmed that successful candidates can verify the status of their applications by checking their dashboards on the agency’s portal, The Guardian reported

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Though did not confirm or deny the information when contacted by our reporter, other senior sources within the agency verified the development.

NELFUND spokesman Nasir Ayitogo mentioned that the agency is diligently working to fulfill its mandate of supporting indigent Nigerian students, who are eagerly awaiting the benefits of this initiative approved by President Bola Tinubu.

According to sources, each applicant's status will display the verification process, showing whether they are approved or denied and when the funds are eventually disbursed.

Student loan distribution

The fees of the various applicants would be transferred directly to their institutions' bank accounts, a report by Premium Times confirmed.

The report hinted that these fees would encompass the total amount owed by students based on their respective courses, including additional charges such as departmental fees, laboratory fees, and health insurance fees.

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As quoted in the report:

"It is clear that the total fees for these 70,000 applicants amount to N35 billion, and this will be disbursed this week.

"The applicants will also receive a monthly allowance for their maintenance."

The sources hinted in the report clarified that the tuition fees will be disbursed to different institutions only at the start of each academic session, ensuring that funds are not disbursed all at once.

They verified that the agency has finalized arrangements to disburse N20,000 monthly to each successful applicant throughout their duration as students.

As quoted in the report:

“This monthly amount will sum up to N240,000 per year. However, applicants must reapply each subsequent year because it is a repayable loan, not a grant."

The report emphasized that regardless of whether beneficiaries’ schools are in session or not, the N20,000 allowance for upkeep will be disbursed monthly to ensure their well-being, even during periods spent at home.

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State-owned institutions to begin soon

The agency announced that it would launch the portal for applicants from state-owned tertiary institutions across all 36 states of the federation starting on Tuesday, June 25.

They also stated that the complete list of institutions that have submitted their students’ data for the Student Verification System (SVS) portal would be published on June 24.

FG provides answers to questions on student loan

Meanwhile, Nigerians need answers to a lot of questions regarding the newly signed amended student loan bill by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

Tinubu signed the bill after the House of Representatives and the Nigerian Senate passed it for presidential approval.

The Special Assistant to President Tinubu on Social Media| National Convener of the PBAT Media Centre, Olusegun Dada, shared a video which highlighted some of the frequently asked questions about the scheme.

Proofread by Kola Muhammed, journalist and copyeditor at Legit.ng

Source: Legit.ng