The Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND) has reaffirmed its commitment to leveraging technology to improve access to student loans across the country.
Speaking at a Stakeholders Engagement Session and Technical Workshop in Abuja, NELFUND Managing Director, Mr. Akintunde Sawyerr, highlighted the Fund’s vision of creating a seamless, transparent, and efficient system for loan application and disbursement.
“Our mission at NELFUND goes beyond disbursing loans—it’s about ensuring every young Nigerian, regardless of background or location, has a real opportunity to pursue education,” Sawyerr said.
He acknowledged the financial challenges faced by students, especially in technical institutions, noting that many are forced to drop out due to lack of funds. He urged stakeholders, including government bodies and the private sector, to collaborate with the Fund in building a sustainable and transformative loan system.
“We’re developing a tech-driven infrastructure to simplify application, enable institutional verification, and ensure fast and fair disbursement. Transparency and ease of access are key,” he added.
Sawyerr emphasized that institutions have a critical role in integrating their systems with NELFUND to ensure that students benefit from a unified and stress-free process.
Also speaking at the session, NELFUND Executive Director of Operations, Iyal Mustapha, revealed that over 320,000 students have received funding, though gaps still exist between registered users and completed applications.
“Out of 576,000 registrations on our portal, only 516,000 applications were completed. Many students drop out due to data issues or incomplete submissions,” Mustapha said.
He explained that the institutional loan, which is different from the N20,000 monthly upkeep loan, is disbursed directly to schools. NELFUND, he said, is exploring direct integration with school portals and plans to deploy IT teams to enable smoother application processes.
“With improved institutional collaboration, students may soon apply through their school platforms, removing the need to go through NELFUND’s main portal,” Mustapha added.
The session aimed to foster open dialogue and collaboration among educational institutions to enhance the reach and impact of the student loan scheme.
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