The Federal Government has indefinitely postponed the launch of the Student Loan Scheme which was earlier scheduled to kick-off on Thursday, 14 March 2024. This was disclosed on Tuesday during an interview on Arise News by the Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND), Akintunde Sawyer.
Sawyer said, “Unfortunately, I won’t be able to commit to a specific date. We are sort of waiting to ensure that all stakeholders are aligned to make sure that nobody is blindsided, then we can actually roll this out in a meaningful, comprehensive, wholesome and sustainable way.
“One thing that I will commit to is that this is a well-intended project. The president, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu means well around this and absolutely wants this rolled out as fast as possible, and we’re working very hard to help realize that.”
Recall that President Tinubu signed a bill in June 2023 to establish a Students Loan Fund to provide interest-free loans to Nigerians enrolled for higher education.
The Loan Scheme was initially scheduled to take off around September 2023 but was postponed for January 2024, similarly, this new deadline could not be reached, so it was further rescheduled for launch on Thursday, March 14, 2024, which has now been indefinitely postponed.