According to information obtained newsmen, President Bola Tinubu will officially launch the Student Loan Scheme at the State House in Abuja on February 21.
The launch will coincide with the start of applications for eligible candidates nationwide, as confirmed by the Executive Secretary of the Nigeria Education Loan Fund, Dr. Akintunde Sawyer.The Student Loan Scheme is a new initiative that aims to make higher education more accessible for Nigerian students.
On June 12, 2023, President Tinubu signed the Access to Higher Education Act, 2023 into law, making interest-free loans available to low-income students pursuing higher education in Nigerian institutions. The move was described by a member of the then-Presidential Strategy Team, Dele Alake, as fulfilling one of President Tinubu’s campaign promises to liberalize education funding.
According to the Students Loan Law, the Nigerian Education Loan Fund was established to process all loan requests, grants, disbursements, and recoveries. A Presidency official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, confirmed that President Tinubu is scheduled to launch the Student Loan Scheme on February 21, if all goes according to plan.
The launch is expected to take place at the State House Conference Centre in Abuja.The official stated that the President would unveil the Student Loan Scheme’s website and mobile app on the launch date, and that the website would start accepting applications that day.
The scheme was originally scheduled to start in September, but the government decided to delay the launch until 2023. However, President Tinubu has reaffirmed his commitment to starting the scheme in January 2024.
President Tinubu stated at the Economic Summit in Abuja on October 23, 2023, that the Student Loan Programme must begin in January 2024. He declared that there would be no more strikes to hinder the futures of Nigerian children and students. President Tinubu proposed N50 billion in the 2024 budget to support the program’s launch.
At a press briefing on January 17, the Minister of State for Education, Dr. Yusuf Sununu, announced that the program’s website would be completed soon, and that students could access the loan within 30 days of applying. However, with January already passed, there is growing concern over whether the program will be implemented as planned.
According to Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Mr. Bayo Onanuga, the President directed the Nigerian Education Loan Fund to expand its mandate to include students seeking loans for skills development, resulting in a delay in the program’s launch.Onanuga stated that the application interface would allow the board to interact with students and that this was likely the reason for the delay.
