NELFUND clears 22 additional state-owned institutions for student loans

The Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND) has approved 22 additional state-owned tertiary institutions for participation in the student loan program.

In a statement on X, NELFUND said: “The Nigeria Education Loan Fund has announced that students from the following 22 state-owned tertiary institutions can now apply for loans on its portal: nelf.gov.ng.

“This followed a review by the committee responsible for the Student Verification System. Prior to this, 86 state-owned institutions were cleared, bringing a total of 108 institutions whose students are now able to apply.”

With the addition of the 22 state-owned institutions, the total number of approved state institutions now stands at 108.

The student loan scheme is a cornerstone initiative of President Bola Tinubu’s education policy.

Just a month into his presidency, the Access to Higher Education Act was enacted, establishing a legal basis for providing loans to disadvantaged Nigerians to cover tuition fees at local tertiary institutions.

Early this year, the law underwent an amendment that created NELFUND.

NELFUND has been tasked with managing all aspects of the loan program, including receiving and processing loan requests, disbursing funds, and recovering loans, in addition to exploring diverse funding sources and engaging in other productive endeavours.