NELFUND disburses ₦161.97bn in tuition, upkeep to students nationwide, says MD
The Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND) has disbursed a total of ₦161.97 billion as tuition fees and upkeep allowances to students across Nigeria, benefiting 864,798 students since the launch of its student loan portal.
The Managing Director of NELFUND, Akintunde Sawyerr, disclosed this on Tuesday in Abuja during a news conference where he briefed journalists on the progress, impact and challenges of the student loan scheme.
Sawyerr said the fund, which is a key initiative under President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, was created to ensure that no Nigerian student is denied access to tertiary education due to financial constraints.
According to him, the agency has received 1,361,011 loan applications nationwide. Of the ₦161.97 billion disbursed so far, ₦89.94 billion was paid directly to 263 tertiary institutions to cover tuition and other institutional charges, while ₦72.03 billion was paid directly to students as upkeep allowances.
“As at today, 1,361,011 applications have been received, 864,798 students have benefited from the scheme, and total disbursement stands at ₦161.97 billion,” he said.
Sawyerr described the figures as evidence of the scheme’s growing impact, noting that financial barriers to higher education were being steadily removed for thousands of Nigerian families.
He added that NELFUND had carried out extensive sensitisation programmes across tertiary institutions over the past year to boost awareness and participation. Going forward, he said the agency would expand its engagement to parents, guardians, traditional rulers and faith-based organisations to deepen public trust and understanding of the scheme.
On upkeep allowances, the NELFUND boss revealed that a reconciliation exercise after the 2024/2025 academic session identified 11,685 students with outstanding payments amounting to ₦927.98 million.
He explained that the delays were due to technical and operational issues such as network failures, unsuccessful transactions and unvalidated bank details, rather than policy shortcomings.
He said management had approved a one-off reconciliation process, including direct engagement with affected students, a grace period to update bank details, multi-layer verification and prompt payment once issues are resolved.
Speaking on sustainability, Sawyerr said recent amendments to the student loan law — including the removal of guarantor requirements, inclusion of upkeep allowances, and provisions allowing the fund to raise and invest resources — had strengthened the scheme’s long-term viability.
He added that partnerships with philanthropists, corporate bodies and government agencies were being explored, citing a ₦20 billion collaboration with the Ministry of Education on Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET).
Also speaking, NELFUND’s Executive Director of Operations, Mustapha Iyal, said the outstanding upkeep payments affected about 11,000 students out of over 400,000 beneficiaries in the 2024/2025 academic session. He noted that many of the issues arose from incorrect information submitted by applicants.
Iyal said feedback had been received from more than 100 institutions, adding that payment of the outstanding allowances would commence shortly.
He further disclosed that applications for the 2025/2026 academic session began in November 2025, with over 200 institutions submitting updated student data. About 280,000 applications have been received so far, and loans have already been disbursed to more than 150,000 students.
He added that upkeep payments for the new academic session would begin in January, noting that allowances are tied to active academic sessions and require fresh applications each session.
On loan repayment, Iyal said repayment had already started, with some beneficiaries who have graduated and secured employment beginning to repay their loans.
NAN
