The federal government of Nigeria has started a full review of how student loans are given out through the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFund). This decision came after people raised concerns about fraud in the loan process, which caused serious reactions from students and the public.
Dr. Maruf Alausa, Nigeria’s Minister of Education, shared this update with reporters in Abuja. He had just finished a meeting with Vice Chancellors from different universities and the head of NELFund to talk about improving the way loans are handled.
A New Committee to Fix the System
The minister explained that a new committee has been set up. This committee includes university leaders, members of the National Universities Commission (NUC), NELFund officials, and the Ministry of Education. Their job is to go over the current system, find the problems, and create better and clearer rules for giving loans to students.
Dr. Alausa said the group talked about how money is sent from NELFund to the schools and how students are informed. He mentioned that the system is working but not perfectly. There are areas that need improvement, especially in how fast students get notified and how soon they receive the funds.
Another goal of the committee is to make sure school fees are listed in a clear and standard way. This will help students understand what they’re being charged for. The committee will also work on setting specific dates when NELFund should send money to universities. This is to avoid delays and confusion.
The minister made it clear that the government doesn’t plan to throw away the current system. Instead, they want to make it better. He added that the committee has three weeks to finish its work and make recommendations.
In the next four weeks, the government will release new and improved rules on how the student loan process should work. These guidelines will be sent to universities and also shared with the public, so everyone knows what to expect.
Dr. Alausa said once the committee finishes its report, the recommendations will be shared publicly. This is part of the government’s plan to make the loan process more open and trustworthy for students.
