The Nigerian Educational Loan Fund (NELFUND) has announced that it will disburse ₦850 million to various institutions today, Wednesday.
This comes in addition to the ₦1.7 billion previously disbursed to approximately 20,000 students.
Speaking at a press briefing in Abuja, the Managing Director of NELFUND, Akintunde Sawyer, revealed the details of the disbursement.
“The sum of ₦850 million will be leaving the account of NELFUND today to institutions. This is apart from the ₦1.7 billion naira that has already been disbursed,” Sawyer stated.
Earlier, Sawyer highlighted that institutional fees had already been disbursed to 20,000 students through their respective institutions.
He further noted that a total of 260,000 loans, including institutional fees and upkeep, have been approved.
Sawyer also mentioned that no fewer than 1.2 million students are expected to benefit from this cardinal programme, which is a significant initiative of President Bola Tinubu’s administration.
The educational loan scheme was launched with an initial approval of ₦35 billion by President Tinubu, following the signing of the law backing the scheme on April 3.
The programme aims to support students in their educational pursuits by providing necessary financial aid.
Meanwhile, the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), Ebonyi State University Chapter, has criticized the Student Loan scheme by President Bola Tinubu’s government, asserting that its implementation and sustainability are not feasible.
The Union urged for a reassessment of its demands which include enhanced funding for revitalization, and the promotion of university autonomy and academic freedom throughout the universities in the country.
We that the Chairman of the EBSU-ASUU Chapter, Dr. Ikechuku Igwenyi, made these remarks during a press conference held on Monday in Abakaliki, the capital of the state.