The Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND) has called on higher institutions in the South-South and South-East regions to step up participation in the student loan initiative aimed at expanding access to tertiary education across the country.
Managing Director of NELFUND, Akintunde Sawyerr, made the appeal during a stakeholder engagement and technical workshop held on Monday in Abuja. The session focused on system automation and the loan application process, and it marked the beginning of a three-day event involving universities, polytechnics, monotechnics, colleges of education, agriculture, health, and nursing.
Sawyerr highlighted a noticeable disparity in applications from the South-South and South-East compared to other regions and encouraged institutions in these zones to improve awareness and drive student involvement.
“This workshop marks a significant step in our journey to deliver a fully digitised, transparent, and student-centered financial aid system for Nigerian higher education,” he said.
Addressing concerns over reported payments to students who had already graduated, Sawyerr clarified that the Fund maintains strict processes to ensure accountability. “If a student applied in their final year and we disbursed tuition on their behalf, it becomes their responsibility to seek a refund from their school if the fees were already paid,” he explained. “We cannot afford to bypass due diligence when handling public funds.”
Chairman of the House Committee on Students Loans, Scholarships, and Higher Education Financing, Ifeoluwa Ehindero, also emphasized the need for a modern, efficient, and accountable system. He noted that automating NELFUND’s processes is essential to ensure timely disbursement and proper fund management.
“We are working to ensure the legislative framework supports these reforms, but laws alone aren’t enough. We need institutions’ collaboration and feedback to build a truly responsive system,” he said.
NELFUND’s Executive Director of Operations, Iyal Mustapha, revealed that over 576,000 students have registered so far, with loan applications totaling over ₦170 billion. He echoed the call for institutions in the South-East and South-South to intensify sensitisation campaigns.
Representing the National Universities Commission (NUC), Lawal Mohammed Faruk described NELFUND as one of the most impactful initiatives of the Federal Government. “Our vision is to eventually have every student in Nigeria—whether in public or private institutions—onboarded into the system,” he added.
