The National Assembly, on Monday, partnered with the Nigerian Education Loan Fund, NELFUND, to expand the student loan scheme from 1.6 million direct beneficiaries to seven million for national transformation.
This followed a declaration by NELFUND Managing Director, Akintunde Sawyerr, that the scheme, which has disbursed ₦282 billion so far, would reach 50 million Nigerians through planned expansion into skills acquisition, technical and vocational education and training.
Speaking at a one-day national sensitisation programme on student loans organised by the Senate Committee on Tertiary Education and TETFund in collaboration with NELFUND, Deputy President of the Senate, Barau Jibrin, said the sensitisation was timely as many indigent Nigerians are awaiting the intervention.
“No matter how beneficial a programme is, if the intended beneficiaries are not adequately informed about it, its impact will be limited. People need to understand what the programme entails and how they can access it. That is exactly what this sensitisation campaign is about and it should be taken round the six geopolitical zones,” he said.
In his remarks, Chairman of the House Committee on Student Loans, Scholarships and Tertiary Education Financing, Hon. Ifeoluwa Ehindero, said the sensitisation was timely and important.
“This sensitisation programme is both timely and important as it helps create awareness and deepen understanding of the opportunities available to students through the scheme.
The Fund has recorded the remarkable achievement of reaching over 1.5 million beneficiary students and disbursing more than ₦282 billion to support Nigerian scholars,” he said.
Giving clearer statistics, Sawyerr said 1.6 million Nigerian students have benefited directly from the scheme, which translates to about 10 million lives impacted indirectly.
“Today, 1.6 million Nigerian students have directly benefited from the NELFUND scheme. If we consider that the average Nigerian family consists of about five people, it means we are directly and indirectly impacting nearly 10 million lives.
“We are however appealing to stakeholders on the need to expand the student loan scheme to target up to 7 million beneficiaries across Nigerian tertiary institutions and vocational centres for required driving and real national transformation,” he said.
Earlier in his welcome address, Chairman of the Senate Committee on TETFund, Senator Muntari Dandutse, said the collaborative sensitisation programme was in furtherance of the committee’s constitutional oversight responsibilities and commitment to ensuring equitable access to education for all Nigerians.
