MD OF NELFUND SAYS THE AGENCY MAY CONSIDER INTEGRATING PRIVATE INSTITUTIONS INTO THE STUDENT LOAN SCHEME SOON 15-05-25
By Sadiq Aminu. The Managing Director of the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND), Mr. Akintunde Sawyerr, says the agency may consider integrating private institutions into the student loan scheme within the next three years.
He stated this during a strategic engagement and sensitization campaign with heads of institutions and other stakeholders in Enugu State.
Mr. Sawyerr explained that the long-term goal was to ensure all Nigerian students, regardless of institution type, had access to financial support for their education, however, there was an urgent need to address the pressing demands of students in public universities and colleges.
He said the three years would give the Agency ample time to review the impact of the scheme on Nigerian youths and what it might take to integrate the private sector segment.
“We have only been going for one year. We need to really address the public sector first. These loans allow students to otherwise drop out for very small amounts of money.
“The students that we see in the public sector don’t even have the option in most cases to go to private sector, and some of them are dropping out. So we want to address that, make sure that we’ve got them covered.
“And then when we see after a while, I think two, three years max, when we see the effect this has had on the generality of youth in Nigeria, we can then do some sort of review to see what it might mean for moving to the private sector segment.” He said.
Mr. Sawyer encouraged stakeholders in the South East region to key into the initiative as it was an opportunity provided by the present administration for Nigerians to have access to education without financial constraints.
The Special Adviser to the Enugu State Governor on Education Innovation, Dr. Chinyere Onyeisi, who harped on the importance of education, urged students in the region to take advantage of the opportunity and apply.
“So what the government is doing has an essential role to play in different areas of education. But this NELFund has to do with the student support system. And it is important for our students in Southeast and Enugu in particular to maximise the opportunity to apply.
The campaign which was largely done in the local dialect to enhance comprehension and encourage people in the region to key into the programme is part of NELFUND’s efforts to increase intake from the region.
A recent study by NELFUND revealed that the South East Zone recorded the lowest enrollment in the Student Loans scheme.