"Our Nation’s Future": FG Sends Fresh Message to Nigerian Students Over NELFUND, Details Emerge

"Our Nation’s Future": FG Sends Fresh Message to Nigerian Students Over NELFUND, Details Emerge

  • As many Nigerian students benefit from the opportunity, NELFUND has asked all undergraduates to embrace its current loan scheme
  • Legit.ng reports that NELFUND is a financial institution established under the student loans (access to higher education)
  • The initiative was signed into law by President Bola Tinubu in April 2024, an action authorities said marked a significant step towards ensuring sustainable higher education

Legit.ng journalist, Ridwan Adeola Yusuf, has over 9 years of experience covering basic and tertiary education in Nigeria.

FCT, Abuja - Akintunde Sawyerr, the managing director (MD) of the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND), has called on students to take full advantage of the NELFUND student loan scheme.

Legit.ng reports that the NELFUND boss made this appeal during a student loan sensitisation programme organised by the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) in Port Harcourt, Rivers state, on Thursday, August 22.

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NELFUND: Details emerge as Nigerian government sends fresh message to students
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu had vowed to empower Nigerian youths. Photo credit: @officialABAT
Source: Twitter

Sawyerr described the scheme as a historic initiative aimed at making higher education accessible to all, regardless of financial background.

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In his address, the NELFUND MD spoke about the scheme’s 'alignment' with President Bola Tinubu’s commitment to education. According to him, this is a cornerstone of national development.

He highlighted that the loan scheme is not just a financial assistance but an investment in the future of Nigerian students, allowing them to pursue higher education without the burden of financial constraints.

His words:

“The NELFUND student loan scheme was conceived to ensure that every Nigerian student can access higher education without financial hindrance.
“This initiative is a testament to President Tinubu’s vision of empowering the youth to become the architects of our nation’s future.”

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Details of NELFUND student loan

Furthermore, Sawyerr provided details on the loan scheme, explaining that it covers both tuition fees and living expenses, with repayment terms designed to be fair and manageable.

He also assured students that loan repayment would only begin two years post-National Youth Service Corps (NYSC), provided they have secured employment or started a business.

NELFUND told to publish names of beneficiaries

Meanwhile, a public affairs expert, Adigun Muse, has called on the federal government to publish names of individuals benefiting from the NELFUND.

Muse said if the distribution of packages as shared on social media were authentic, there was a need for the publication of verifiable names of recipients in each state, local government, and community.

Muse told Legit.ng:

"It's time and expedient to publish the names of the beneficiaries, because there are certain commentators who are sowing seeds of evil that no student got the money."

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Read more on NELFUND

NELFUND's disbursements

Earlier, Legit.ng reported that NELFUND disbursed funds to 19 tertiary institutions across the country.

It paid out N2.94 billion as school fees for 27,667 students who have completed the priority checks.

Source: Legit.ng

Authors:
Ridwan Adeola avatar

Ridwan Adeola (Current Affairs Editor) Ridwan Adeola Yusuf is a Current Affairs Editor at Legit.ng and a certified journalist with over 9 years of experience. He edited Politics Nigeria's articles, was the Acting Editor of AllNews Nigeria and Fact-Checking Researcher (Africa Check). He received his HND in Mass Communication from The Polytechnic Ibadan. He received a Certificate of Achievement (Journalism Clinic’s Fix The Leak masterclass, 2021) and also completed Google News Initiative's Advance digital reporting curriculum. Contact him at ridwan.adeola@corp.legit.ng.