The Nigerian Education Loan Fund has revealed plans to introduce specialised software to help enrol students with disabilities in higher institutions.
Managing Director/Chief Executive of NELFUND, Akintunde Sawyerr, stated this during a stakeholders’ engagement on student loans in Benin City, Edo State.
Sawyerr highlighted that the Act establishing the loan scheme guarantees equal opportunity for all, adding that NELFUND will collaborate with the National Commission for Persons with Disabilities to ensure more inclusivity.
He described the initiative under President Bola Tinubu’s administration as a transformative step for education in Nigeria.
While speaking on concerns about loan repayment in the event of a beneficiary’s death, Sawyerr explained that the in such scenarios, the loan is not transferred to the family or anyone else.
Sawyerr reiterated the government’s commitment to making tertiary education accessible to all Nigerians, stating that “President Bola Ahmed Tinubu came up with this initiative so that no Nigerian student anywhere in Nigeria would be deprived of the opportunity to gain tertiary education because of lack of money.
On his part, Edo State Deputy Governor, Dennis Idahosa, commended the Federal Government for making the student loan scheme a reality.
He said the state will collaborate with NELFUND for a very aggressive sensitization to ensure that all students in Edo State benefit from the student loan initiative.
Also speaking during the stakeholders’ engagement, Edo State Commissioner for Education, Dr Paddy Iyamu, described the scheme as nearly free due to its zero-interest nature, explaining that repayment would only begin two years after completing the National Youth Service Corps and when beneficiaries are employed, with deductions set at 10% of their salary.