NELFUND’s loan facility can’t accommodate postgraduate students – Sawyerr

Akintunde Sawyerr, managing director of the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND), has given insight into why postgraduate students have not been availed the privilege of benefiting from the student loan scheme of President Bola Tinubu’s Administration.

Sawyerr, speaking on a live television programme over the weekend, explained the eligibility criteria for the scheme, clarifying why post-graduate Nigerian students are not eligible to apply for the loan.

Throwing more light on postgraduate students’ eligibility for the loan, he said that the facility is currently only available to students pursuing their first degree.

“Post-graduate students can’t apply for this loan. We have a lot of people in this country who are just trying to get on the first rung of the ladder as far as tertiary education is concerned. The funds we have are focused on those people who are looking for their first opportunity.

“I congratulate those who have graduated who are doing their Master’s or PhDs, it’s fantastic. At some point in the future, we will be able to fund them. Today, we are looking for those who need us most. They are the people we want to support,” he said.

Besides, Sawyerr explained that the way President Tinubu’s Administration set up the student loan scheme, an applicant does not necessarily have to know anyone in NELFUND to get the loan.

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“The way the President has set this up and the way he has insisted that this must work is that you don’t need to know anybody to access this loan. And that’s what we are doing.

“No connections, no long leg, no man-know-man. We are not going to allow it to happen. The President wants us to completely democratise education”, he added.

Moreover, he said that although repayments had not yet been received, the fund is developing a robust repayment structure to facilitate timely and effective loan repayments.

However, he explained that the postgraduate students might be eligible for the loan facility in the future, stressing that while plans exist to extend financial support to postgraduate students, the immediate priority remains assisting undergraduates who face financial difficulties.

The fund is committed to ensuring that students do not drop out of tertiary institutions due to a lack of funds, and future adjustments to the loan scheme will be considered based on available resources and policy direction.

Furthermore, Sawyerr noted that more than 271,000 students pursuing tertiary education have received a financial lifeline through the student loan scheme since its inception in May 2024.

“Nigerian students are reacting extremely positively to the initiative. And as more disbursements happen, they are becoming more trusting. One of the interesting things going on at the moment is that President Bola Tinubu is restoring trust in the government. The students are receiving it well. We are transparent about what we are doing.

“In total, to date, we have about 271,000 Nigerian students who have either had their fees paid or their fees plus upkeep,” he said.