The Managing Director of the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFund), Akintunde Sawyerr, has urged parents in Ekiti State to encourage their children to take advantage of the student loan facility to acquire education.
He charged parents to ensure they benefit from the opportunity, and President Bola Tinubu’s intervention aimed at taking away the burden of funding tertiary education for their children from them.
Sawyerr gave the charge at the Palace of Oore of Otun Ekiti and the Paramount Ruler of Moba land, Oba Adekunle Adeagbo, in Ekiti State.
This is while he was addressing traditional rulers of 13 kingdoms and their subjects in the Moba local government area on the need for their children to key into the student loan scheme of the federal government.
He said, “The impact has been huge. In the last 24 hours, we have had 12,000 applications for the student loan. You can imagine; the impact has been huge. Since May last year, we have had a little less than 700,000 beneficiaries and over a million applications. It is unprecedented.
“It shows you the pent up demand there has been and the political acumen of President Bola Tinubu to be able to see that this is what the country needs. If this country gets itself educated and on its feet, nobody will be able to threaten Nigeria. We are the greatest country in the world.
The NELFund boss, who lauded Oba Adeagbo for his interest in the advancement of his people, said, “This visit came about because of the proactive action of the paramount ruler of Moba land, who came to our office and asked us to ensure that none of the people in these 13 kingdoms under his rulership is left behind.
“As soon as I saw that gesture, it was incumbent upon me to ensure that I come here as fast as possible. These are the sorts of opportunities we are looking for and we have been so well received.
“I want parents to key into this. I want them to be very focused and encourage their children to take this loan with very soft terms so that they can bring relief to themselves, bring fulfilment to their children and bring honour to Nigeria,” Sawyerr appealed to the communities.
NELFund Executive Director, Finance and Administration, Dr Femi Akinfala, assured the parents that their children were automatically qualified for the student loan once they secured admission to public tertiary institutions, as long as the student applied following the normal channel.
Akinfala said, “What the Tinubu administration has done with the student loan scheme is to make parents forget the financing of the education of their children in public tertiary institutions as the government would bear the burden through the loan”.
In his remarks, the Oore of Otun Ekiti, Oba Adeagbo, expressed joy over the visit of the NELFund leadership and what the kingdoms would benefit from it, in terms of unfettered access of their sons and daughters to education.
He said, “This student loan is a testament to that fact. We should seize the opportunity. We are seeing an opportunity like this because President Tinubu, a man who values education, is on the seat.
“We are the ones to develop ourselves. The only way there can be development is through education. Let us not take this for granted, let us mobilize our sons and daughters.
“The result of this student loan, which gives our children access to education, is not really today, but in the future – 10 years, 20 years, 30 years, 40 years from now, we will begin to see the impacts. We can remember what the late Premier, Chief Obafemi Awolowo, did, free education, today look at the impact in the Southwest”.
Recall that NELFUND was established to implement the Nigerian Student Loan Scheme, signed into law by President Bola Tinubu in April 2024.
The Tinubu-led administration’s initiative provides interest-free loans to students in public tertiary institutions to cover tuition and living expenses.
The scheme, which began accepting applications in May 2024, was designed to eliminate financial barriers to education and support students from low-income families.
Beneficiaries are expected to repay the loans after completing their studies and gaining employment.