Tinubu celebrates N70b students’ loan disbursement

President Bola Tinubu has expressed excitement that over N70 billion has been processed for payment in the Federal Government’s Students’ Loan programme.

This is even as the President pledged to support the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND) in achieving its mission of breaking financial barriers in higher education.

Addressing attendees at the combined 29th and 30th convocation ceremony of the University of Uyo, President Tinubu was upbeat that the initiative would have a profound impact on the country’s education landscape, enabling more Nigerians to acquire the skills and knowledge needed to drive national growth and development.

NELFUND, he noted, is playing a critical role in providing financial assistance to students.

While acknowledging that the agency encountered ‘teething problems’ during its early stages, the president emphasized that this initiative aligns with his administration’s commitment to ensuring that financial constraints do not hinder Nigerians from pursuing higher education.

Represented by the Vice-Chancellor, University of Port Harcourt, Prof. Owunari Abraham Georgewill, Tinubu said: “As a government, as part of our Renewed Hope Agenda for the education sector, the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND) was established to provide financial support to students in tertiary institutions.

“To date, over 70 billion Naira has already been processed for payment to students and their respective institutions through this innovative programme. While NELFUND may still be facing teething problems peculiar to new agencies of its kind, the progress made so far is impressive.”

He appealed to beneficiaries to be honest and committed in their loan repayments to make the fund sustainable.

“Let me assure you that this administration will continue to do everything possible to assist NELFUND in achieving its mandate of making tertiary education more accessible to all Nigerians,” he stated.

In a post on its X handle, the Fund explained that 98 institutions across the geo-political zones have so far benefitted from the facility, while 105,844 students are receiving financial support.