• Tinubu signs bill into law, says no one will be excluded from quality education
• FG earmarks N200b for take-off, targets N194b tax from FIRS
• Scheme to benefit 140,000 in first year, says Echono
• ‘Provisions downplay high unemployment problem’

Prospective beneficiaries who are anxiously waiting for the student loan scheme of the Federal Government may have to wait much longer as issues of eligibility, amount to be disbursed, and its modalities are far from resolved.

Despite these gaps, President Bola Tinubu, yesterday, signed the bill into law, with a promise that no student would be denied the opportunity to build his future regardless of background.

Although section 23 of the Act has removed the controversial family income threshold and stringent guarantor requirement to enable applicants to get the loans subject to identity verification guidelines by the board, it was, however, silent on the class of students who are qualified for the loan.

Conspicuously missing too is the modality of accessing the loan, a responsibility that has been acceded to the board of directors, and in a manner that borders on transparency.

Similarly, while the Federal Government has earmarked N200 billion in the 2024 Appropriation Law for the scheme, there is no clear provision yet for the revolving fund beyond tax cut in the subsequent year to guarantee proper funding and sustainability.

Section 23 states: “An applicant for a loan under the Act must be a citizen of Nigeria; have secured admission into any university, polytechnic, college of education, or school established by the Federal or State Government; or a vocational or skills acquisition centre licensed by the Federal Government.”

Besides, section 6(1) (d) of the Act mandates the board of directors to set guidelines, criteria, and conditions for granting and recovering the loan and tasks them on national spread to eliminate accusations of nepotism.

A website is expected to be launched after the constitution of the board by the president to enable applicants to apply for the facility.

It also defines the resource structure of the fund by establishing a ‘General Reserve Fund,’ where one per cent of all taxes, levies and duties collected by the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) would be deposited.

Recall that the Senate and House of Representatives had passed the harmonised Student Loans (Access to Higher Education) Act (Repeal and Re-Enactment) 2024, following the adoption of the report of the joint committee on tertiary institutions (TETFund) and Students Loan, Scholarship and Higher Education Financing.

The Act prescribes a one per cent collectable tax by the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) as one of the sources of funding the scheme.

The Guardian investigation showed that the one per cent tax could translate to N194 billion for the student loan programme, if the revenue-generating agency meets its 2024 revenue target of N19.4 trillion.

In a policy brief seen by our correspondent, the Federal Government has also earmarked over N200 billion to the fund through appropriation. The sum of N50 billion was earlier budgeted for the scheme.

The Guardian observed that unlike the extant law, which gives the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) sweeping powers, this has been removed in the Act.

Another significant change is the scrapping of the position of Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND).

It was further observed that the controversial clause, which domiciled the fund with the CBN has been expunged. In its stead, the fund is now domiciled with the President in the new bill.

It would be recalled that stakeholders in the education sector have raised concerns over the absolute powers given to the CBN in the Act, insisting that it was outside its core mandate.

The new Act transferred such sweeping powers to the President, as it empowers the commander-in-chief to appoint members of the newly established board of directors, executive directors, secretary and managing director, who will oversee the day-to-day administration of the fund.

On disqualification, the Act stated that applicants who have defaulted on previous loans granted by other organisations, even as beneficiaries of other scholarship schemes from the Federal Government or its agencies and departments, are excluded.

Also disqualified are people found guilty of plagiarism or examination malpractice by any school authority, as well as those convicted of a felony or any offence involving dishonesty or fraud; drug offences and violence against persons.

On repayment, the Act provided that a beneficiary may request an extension of enforcement action if unable to get a job after two years, by providing an affidavit indicating that he is not employed in any capacity or receiving any income.

Executive Secretary of the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund), Sonny Echono disclosed that about 140,000 students would benefit from the scheme in the first year, although he was silent on the amount each beneficiary would receive.

Echono emphasised that the new bill would open a new value chain in the skills sector.

He said: “We have gone through the platforms to see if everything is in place, you can apply today if we choose to launch it. But we have a few cases, which we have synchronised with the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB). We know the bulk of the applications will come when candidates have secured admission, which is going to be around May, this year.”

According to him, most students in school have already paid their fees for the session, although he noted that there might still be a few, who are yet to pay due to some challenges.

Echono assured that this set of students would be among the first to access the loan once it takes off.

The Act was received with mixed reactions as the major unions of tertiary institutions, including the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) and Academic Staff Union of Polytechnics (ASUP) did not hesitate to remind Nigerians that they have never been in support of the loan.

The unions described the loan as discriminatory, saying it downplayed the unemployment crisis in the nation.

“We see a big booby trap in expecting graduates to commence repayment of the loans after two years of graduation when the evidence before us showed that a large majority of graduates are not guaranteed any form of employment within two years of graduation. This alone endangers the sustainability of the loan scheme,” the unions stated.

To make the scheme work effectively, an education consultant, Dr Joel Olumakin, said the Federal Government can build a strong database for managing students’ records right from primary to university level.

With such a structure in place, Olumakin said the scheme could play a crucial role in widening access to higher education, enabling students from various backgrounds to pursue their academic goals.

While applauding Tinubu on the law, President of the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS), Lucky Emonefe, said it was better to start late and get it right than hurriedly proceed with defects.

But a civil society organisation, the Education Rights Campaign (ERC) described the backflip and several postponements by the Federal Government as a national embarrassment.

The national coordinator, Hassan Soweto, demanded that all fees increased in anticipation of the postponed programme be reversed with immediate effect.

Soweto reminded that a similar policy introduced in the 70s left a bitter taste in the mouths of beneficiaries.

He identified multiple areas where the government could cut the cost of governance, including salaries and allowances of political office holders, security votes, and huge feeding costs and maintenance of political office holders, saying this could raise an extra sum of N1.7 trillion annually as part of intervention funds to address the crisis facing public education.

“Through our research, we found that the conditions of the loan and the fact that only about 10 per cent of the total number of students can benefit make the scheme a badly thought-out, ill-conceived and fundamentally unworkable policy,” Soweto said.

He, subsequently, called for the conversion of the loan into a grant to support students’ living costs.

A public analyst, Tokunbo Adedokun, said instead of student loans, the government should introduce merit-based scholarships to encourage academic excellence, as this would motivate students to strive for excellence and contribute positively to the nation.

Besides, he canvassed increased budgetary allocation to education, with part of it directed towards scholarships, grants, and the overall improvement of education infrastructure.

While assenting the bill, Tinubu reassured of his administration’s commitment to prioritise education, especially skills development programmes.

The new Act represents one of Tinubu’s flagship policies to boost the prospects of youths acquiring tertiary education in the country.

“This is to ensure that no one, no matter how poor their background is, is excluded from quality education and opportunity to build their future.

“We are here because we are all educated and were helped. In the past, we have seen a lot of our children drop out of college and give up the opportunity.

“That is no more, the standard and the control is there for you to apply no matter who you are as long as you are a Nigerian citizen.”