The Managing Director of the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND), Akintunde Sawyerr, has said the Federal Government’s students’ loan programme is designed to boost productivity and happiness among Nigerian students.

According to the NELFUND boss, the inability of students to meet their financial needs to fund their educational pursuits often leads to broader societal issues.

The managing director stated this when he visited Borno State to engage with students, educators, and government officials.

The Guardian reports that NELFUND, an initiative of President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, aims to provide all higher institution students with access to financial resources, enabling them to pursue their educational goals and aspirations with ease.

Sawyerr underscored President Tinubu’s commitment to revitalising education in the country, stating that the loan programme is also designed to reduce unproductivity and unhappiness among Nigerian students.

He explained the loan’s modalities, which include creating an online profile as a prerequisite for application, clarifying that the credit facility is interest-free and does not require a fixed repayment period, making it accessible and flexible for students.

Responding, Borno State Commissioner for Education, Science, Technology, and Innovation, Lawan Wakilbe, reiterated the state government’s commitment to facilitating student access to the loan.

He announced the establishment of a dedicated desk officer for NELFUND in the state, Ali Sheriff, to work in collaboration with the Special Adviser to Governor Zulum on Higher Education and other educators.

This initiative, Wakilbe added, will guide students throughout the application process and ensure they fully understand the benefits of the loan, which he described as a low-risk grant, and encourage all eligible students to take advantage of the programme.

The session also included a Question and Answer segment, where attendees posed questions to seek additional clarification, and the Managing Director provided thorough and insightful responses, offering further illumination on the programme’s details and advantages.

The Fund has disbursed over N11 billion to 98 tertiary institutions, benefiting 105,844 students across the country.