In a move to ensure transparency and encourage participation in the student loan scheme, the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND) has announced that it will publish the full list of tertiary institutions that have submitted their complete student data as requested by the agency.
According to a statement by NELFUND’s Head of Media, Nasir Ayitogo, the list of both federal and state-owned institutions will be published on June 24, 2024. This comes after the recent signing of the Student Loans (Access to Higher Education) Act (Repeal and Re-Enactment) Bill, 2024 by President Bola Tinubu.
The new law empowers NELFUND to provide loans to qualified Nigerian students for tuition, fees, and upkeep during their studies in approved public tertiary institutions, vocational, and skills acquisition establishments.
“For applicants to be able to access the fund, the individual’s details must feature in the institution’s submitted data set sent to the NELFUND Student Verification System (SVS), where automatic applicant verification can then occur seamlessly,” the statement explained. “Failure to have this verification would invalidate the application process and disadvantage applicants.”
NELFUND noted that while many federal institutions have already completed the exercise, the process of uploading data is currently ongoing for state-owned institutions. The publication of the list is aimed at ensuring transparency and encouraging due access and participation in the scheme for both undergraduate applicants and tertiary institutions.
The executive bill was signed into law in the presence of the leadership of the National Assembly, ministers, and major stakeholders in the education sector, marking a significant step forward in improving access to higher education in Nigeria.
