Akintunde Sawyerr says more than 850,000 Nigerians have benefited as the Federal Government expands its student loan programme
The Managing Director of the Nigerian Education Loan Fund, Dr Akintunde Sawyerr, on Friday, August 7, 2026, urged tertiary students across Nigeria’s North Central zone to apply for NELFUND student loans, saying ₦303 billion had been disbursed to higher institutions under the Federal Government’s education financing programme.
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Sawyerr made the appeal at the Renewed Hope Student Leaders Engagement and Digital Acceleration Programme for the North Central Zone, held at the Federal University of Lafia in Nasarawa State.
According to the NELFUND chief, the funding approved by President Bola Tinubu over the past two years has already reached hundreds of thousands of students, with more than one million applications received and no fewer than 850,000 citizens benefiting from the scheme.
He encouraged eligible students in the region to take advantage of the programme rather than allowing financial difficulties to interrupt their education.
Sawyerr said the student loan initiative was designed to address one of the longstanding barriers to higher education in Nigeria by shifting part of the financial burden away from students and their parents.
“The president has recognised this, and he said we cannot let young people just be roaming around the street for any reason, not because they don’t want to learn but because they don’t have money or they didn’t come from rich homes,” he said.
“The president said that is not acceptable.”
The NELFUND boss said the programme was intended to ensure that students were not denied access to education simply because their families could not afford the associated costs.
He also stressed that access to the scheme was designed to be digital and merit-based, rather than dependent on personal connections.
“President Bola Tinubu has made the money available; just make sure that you are qualified for it,” Sawyerr told the student leaders.
“You just have to go online and put in specific pieces of information that confirm that you are qualified.”
His comments come as the Federal Government continues to position student financing as a central part of its broader education reforms.
The Federal Ministry of Education lists the NELFUND Student Loan Programme among the initiatives under its quality assurance pillar within the Nigeria Education Sector Renewal Initiative.
The official NELFUND platform describes the student loan initiative as a programme established to remove financial barriers to higher education.
Its application system is designed to allow eligible students to apply digitally, while loan repayment begins under specified conditions after completion of the National Youth Service Corps period.
The latest government education-sector dashboard also shows the programme continuing to expand, with the Federal Ministry of Education currently reporting about 1.59 million NELFUND beneficiaries nationwide.
That broader figure differs from the 850,000 beneficiaries cited by Sawyerr at the Lafia engagement, reflecting the possibility that the figures referred to different reporting periods or stages of the programme.
The ₦303 billion figure likewise aligns with cumulative disbursement reporting around the period of the event, rather than necessarily representing the programme’s latest live total.
Sawyerr also commended the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Student Engagement, Asefon Sunday, for his role in connecting students with the Federal Government and supporting implementation of the programme.
He said sustained engagement with students was important to ensuring that eligible beneficiaries understood how to access the loans and that the Fund’s mandate reached institutions beyond major urban centres.
Representing the Minister of Education, Dr Tunji Alausa, the Director of University Education at the Federal Ministry of Education, Dr Kareem Lateef, said the student loan scheme reflected the administration’s commitment to investing in young Nigerians.
Lateef said the initiative was aimed not only at helping students remain in higher education but also at preparing them for leadership, innovation, entrepreneurship and participation in the digital economy.
The government has increasingly linked its education financing policies with wider efforts to equip young Nigerians for employment and economic participation.
Its education reform framework includes technical and vocational education, STEMM development, digitalisation and quality assurance as key priorities.
The NELFUND programme has also faced scrutiny over implementation, particularly concerning how funds are handled by participating institutions.
In 2025, the Federal Ministry of Education said it was investigating allegations that some universities had made unauthorised deductions from student loan funds and warned that such practices could undermine the purpose of the scheme.
The continued expansion of the programme therefore comes with a parallel need for transparency, effective verification and timely disbursement to ensure that approved funding reaches students and institutions as intended.
At the Lafia event, Asefon urged student leaders to promote academic excellence, integrity, dialogue and peaceful coexistence within their institutions and communities.
He also pledged to maintain engagement with Nigerian students and create platforms through which their academic, economic and social concerns could reach government.
The Vice-Chancellor of the Federal University of Lafia, Professor Mohammed Kida, said the gathering demonstrated the Federal Government’s commitment to engaging students and supporting their development.
Participants were drawn from tertiary institutions across the North Central geopolitical zone, giving the programme a wider platform for students to learn about government initiatives and engage directly with officials responsible for their implementation.
For students facing financial pressure, Sawyerr’s central message was straightforward: eligibility, rather than political or personal connections, should determine access to the scheme.
With the Federal Government continuing to expand NELFUND’s reach, the effectiveness of the programme will ultimately depend on how successfully the funding translates into sustained access to higher education for students across Nigeria.
Also read: NELFUND cracks down on tertiary institutions withholding student loan refunds
For the thousands of students still facing financial barriers, the scheme represents a potentially powerful route to remaining in school, provided eligible applicants can navigate the digital process and receive support within the required time.
Maryam Idris is a reporter and contributor to Freelanews.com, covering news, business, and public affairs.
