The Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND) has stated that the student loan site would be accessible for applications from students of state-owned higher institutions on June 25th, 2024.
Akintunde Sawyerr, the Fund’s Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer, made the revelations during a Post-Application launch news conference in Abuja on Thursday.
NELFUND further stated that 90 percent of federal universities had already supplied their students’ data to their dashboard, with the remaining 10% yet to submit.
While highlighting the spike in student applications, Sawyerr announced that 30,000 candidates had successfully completed the application procedure.
The NELFUND boss also revealed that the loan scheme has been expanded to students attending state-owned higher institutions, adding that the portal for loan applications would open for the students in three weeks time.
He stated that this was consistent with the desire of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s government to ensure that no one is left behind.
“In accordance with our commitment to democratizing higher education, we are pleased to announce that NELFUND will begin accepting applications from students at state-owned tertiary institutions in three weeks.
“We request all state institutions to submit their students’ data immediately, as requested, to facilitate a smooth and seamless application process,” he said.
Sawyerr also highlighted NELFUND’s plans to develop a comprehensive skills acquisition programme for youngsters in the next six months, with the goal of giving practical, market-relevant skills.
He praised President Bola Tinubu, the National Assembly, the Minister of Education, and the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, among others, for their persistent efforts to make a positive impact in the lives of Nigerian students.
Remember that on June 12, 2023, President Bola Tinubu signed the Access to Higher Education Act, 2023 into law, which allows impoverished students to get interest-free loans for their educational endeavors at any Nigerian higher institution.
The Nigerian Students Loan Law also created the Nigerian Education Loan Fund, which is responsible for processing all loan requests, awards, disbursements, and recovery.
Sawyerr stated, “Since the launch of our student loan application portal last Friday for students in Federal institutions of higher learning, we have seen an extraordinary surge in applications, with over 60,000 submissions since inception.”
“Since we launched the platform last Friday, we have had over 9.5 million visits. When I say nine and a half million, I don’t necessarily mean different individuals because some people may visit the site several times.
“The huge response demonstrates the vital need for financial aid among our student community, and we are dedicated to meeting this urgent demand.
“To ensure efficient application processing, we are pleased to report that over 90% of Federal Institutions of higher learning have submitted their students’ data to NELFUND.
“However, we urge the remaining two Federal Universities and five federal polytechnics to expedite the process to ensure that all eligible students can access our financial support,” he stated.
“Beyond financial aid, NELFUND emphasizes the critical need of providing our young with market-relevant skills. We will establish a comprehensive skills acquisition program six months from today, offering training in a variety of vocational and technical sectors.
“This programme is designed to prepare students to meet the demands of the modern job market, fostering entrepreneurship and innovation among our young people,” he stated.
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