Managing Director of NELFUND, Akintunde Sawyerr (2nd left) flanked by directors of the agency shortly after the press conference on Monday in Abuja
By Felix Khanoba
The Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND) has announced that the 2024/2025 application cycle for student loans will commence on February 22, 2025.
NELFUND’s Managing Director, Akintunde Sawyerr, made this known at a press conference in Abuja on Monday.
He explained that the new cycle was necessary as the 2023/2024 session would conclude on February 21, 2025.
According to Sawyerr, NELFUND has provided significant financial support to Nigerian students since its inception, disbursing a total of N35,555,920,971 in less than a year to cover institutional fees and upkeep allowances.
“In just 220 days, we have received an impressive 364,042 applications with an average of 1,000 applications per day. I am proud to announce that N22,736,960,971 has been disbursed to cover institutional fees across 240 institutions, directly benefiting 215,514 students.
“Furthermore, a total of N12,818,960,000 has been disbursed as upkeep support, reaching 169,114 students, each receiving N20,000 monthly to assist with their living expenses,” he stated.
Sawyerr emphasized NELFUND’s commitment to efficiency, transparency, and continuous improvement, noting that the 2023/2024 student loan application portal would officially close on February 21, 2025.
“As part of our commitment to efficiency, transparency, and continuous improvement, we are here today to formally announce the closure of the 2023/2024 application cycle on our student loan portal. This marks a critical transition as we prepare to open the 2024/2025 application cycle.
“We want to reassure all applicants who have successfully submitted their applications before this deadline that their applications will be processed in line with our established guidelines. Our team remains committed to ensuring a fair and timely review of all pending applications,” he said.
The NELFUND boss urged prospective applicants to prepare for the new cycle by gathering the necessary documentation and ensuring they meet eligibility requirements.
“This transition is not just about closing one phase and opening another. It is about ensuring that we optimize our processes for a more effective loan disbursement system. By adhering to a structured application cycle, we can evaluate applications more effectively and ensure that funds are distributed equitably and transparently.”
On concerns of alleged marginalization of students from the southern part of the country, NELFUND’s Executive Director of Operations, Mustapha Iyal, clarified that while about 69% of beneficiaries were from institutions in the North, many of the students actually hailed from the South.
“We have students that are from the South studying in other institutions. So, our system mostly picks institutions, not applicants. So, you can see that we have a lot of institutions in the North on the system that have students from the South applying for the same loan.
“And we have institutions from the South where students from the South are also applying for the loan. But when you look at the population census, the number is really quite high. And I can tell you for free that our system will have almost 45% to 55% based on Northern applicants and Southern applicants.
“So, the numbers you are seeing are just the institutions per region, not really per applicant. So, I don’t think we have any marginalization in our system. And the way the system runs is, even I cannot put anyone on my system,” he said.
On the recent threat by the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) to disrupt the forthcoming NELFUND board meeting over the absence of a student representative, NELFUND’s Head of Legal Unit clarified that board appointments are the prerogative of the President.
“I think it needs to be clear that in the (NELFUND)Act , it is the prerogative of the President to appoint to the board. We, as management, don’t have that authority to do so. So it is the president’s prerogative to do so.
“And until he does so, then there really no much we can do. What the Act specifies is that a representative of Nigerian students in tertiary institutions, which encompasses universities, polytechnics and colleges of education. It is not specific to any particular body.
“There’s nobody that is mentioned. So that is where we are with regard to that. We are still waiting for the president to make that appointment,” she said.
