Student loan: NELFUND targets 1.2m beneficiaries in first pay-out

…says NIN, BVN required to access loan

By Joy Jimoh

The Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND) is targeting at least 1.2 million beneficiaries in its first disbursement of the student loan introduced by President Bola Tinubu-led Federal Government.

“About 1.2 million Nigerian students in tertiary institutions and government-recognised skill acquisition centres will be among the first batch of beneficiaries,” Akintunde Sawyerr, managing director of NELFUND, said during an interactive session with journalists in Lagos.

Sawyer also disclosed that the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) registration number; national identification number (NIN), and bank verification number, (BVN) were major requirements for accessing student loans.

According to him, the money to fund the loan scheme was one percent of the revenue generated by the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) annually.

Sawyerr said that the requirements for accessing the loan were to confirm eligibility, noting that the management of the loan scheme would verify applications and attach requirements to ascertain their eligibility.

He said disbursement would be in two segments: “The school fee will be paid to the institution on behalf of the student and the stipend directly to the student’s account.”

According to the managing director, financially-indigent undergraduates who need the loan for their education would apply on a designed website and must provide their matriculation details.

However, he said the beneficiaries would be expected to start servicing the loans when they secure jobs or set up businesses.