The Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND) has received a significant boost with a N50 billion injection from the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC). This financial support is aimed at expanding the fund’s capacity to provide educational loans to indigent students across Nigeria.
The EFCC disclosed this development on Tuesday, August 13, 2024, following a courtesy visit by NELFUND’s Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Akintunde Sawyerr, and his team to the EFCC headquarters in Abuja.
During the visit, Sawyerr highlighted the importance of the fund, an initiative under the administration of President Bola Tinubu, designed to address the challenges faced by underprivileged students in accessing higher education. He expressed concern over the underdevelopment of the youth in the education sector and thanked the EFCC for its contribution.
“We appreciate the EFCC for the N50 billion injected into NELFUND from the proceeds of crime recovered by the commission,” Sawyerr said. “We are aware of these funds and are here to express our gratitude. We also seek the EFCC’s oversight on our operations to ensure transparency.”
EFCC Chairman, Ola Olukoyede, praised the initiative, calling it a strategic move against financial crimes. He noted that the inability of parents to fund their children’s education often leads to youth involvement in cybercrimes, and that NELFUND is a crucial policy to counter this trend.
“One of the main incentives for cybercrimes is the inability of parents to fund the education of their children. NELFUND is a policy issue against crimes. President Tinubu should be commended for initiating the Fund,” Olukoyede stated.
Olukoyede emphasized the need for transparency and integrity in managing the fund, urging the NELFUND team to ensure that the N50 billion is not misappropriated.
“I will fight to ensure that money pooled together to support NELFUND is not re-looted. We want your management to provide regular reports on your disbursements to the EFCC. Don’t sign anything that isn’t clear to you, and don’t yield to pressure. Let your staff know that there is no money to share,” he warned.
He also called on all Nigerians to support the success of the NELFUND initiative and the broader goals of the Tinubu administration.
NELFUND was established following President Tinubu’s signing of the Student Loans (Access to Higher Education) Act (Repeal and Re-Enactment) Bill, 2024, into law on April 3, 2024. Registration for the program began in May, with 1.2 million students from federal tertiary institutions across Nigeria participating in the first batch.
On August 7, 2024, NELFUND reported a record number of student loan applications within 24 hours of the launch of its portal, with 9,687 student registrations and 7,975 completed loan applications. As of August 2, 2024, a total of 22,120 students have benefited from the student loan scheme, with N2.5 billion already disbursed.
