The Managing Director of the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND), Mr. Akintunde Sawyerr, has revealed that the agency is exploring plans to expand its student loan scheme to include private institutions within the next three years.
Sawyerr shared this during a strategic engagement and sensitisation campaign held in Enugu on Thursday, aimed at educating heads of institutions and other stakeholders. The campaign utilized local dialects to improve understanding and encourage participation in the programme across the region.
He emphasized the agency’s current focus on addressing the urgent needs of students in public universities and colleges. According to Sawyerr, the primary objective is to support students who might otherwise drop out due to financial constraints.
“We have only been operating for one year. We really need to address the public sector first. These loans help students who would otherwise drop out for very small amounts of money,” he explained. “The students we see in the public sector often don’t even have the option to attend private institutions, and some of them are dropping out. So we want to address that and make sure they’re covered.”
Sawyerr added that after monitoring the impact on public sector students for two to three years, the agency will review the possibility of extending the loan scheme to private institutions.
He also highlighted common challenges faced by the fund, including misunderstandings, misinformation, and skepticism among potential beneficiaries. “People feel uncertain or believe the programme is not meant for them, or that something is preventing them from benefiting. They just have the same problems everyone else has with technology, and then they say, ‘this has been rigged against us.’ But we’re here—we’re not here to waste our time. We’re here to help people apply and to get institutions to participate as well,” Sawyerr stated.
Speaking at the event, the Special Adviser to the Enugu State Governor on Education Innovation, Dr. Chinyere Onyeisi, stressed the importance of the loan programme in supporting education, particularly for students in the Southeast.
“So, what the government is doing plays an essential role in various areas of education. But this NELFund initiative specifically supports students,” she said. “It is important for our students in the Southeast, and Enugu in particular, to maximise the opportunity to apply.”
Dr. Onyeisi urged teachers and school heads to continue spreading awareness of the loan programme, ensuring students understand the application process and are able to benefit from the initiative. She noted, “The major takeaway for the teachers and heads of institutions here today is that when they return to their respective schools, they are expected to continue cascading the sensitisation programme to ensure that students understand the procedures, know how to apply, and apply effectively to benefit from this initiative—because it is real.”
She concluded by sharing that students in other states have already started benefiting from the programme.
