The South-East caucus of the National Assembly has raised concerns over the apparent exclusion of students from higher institutions in the South-East from the Federal Government’s student loan scheme. This comes after it was revealed that none of the 27,667 students who have benefited from the N2.95 billion loans disbursed by the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND) so far are from the South-East.
Despite these concerns, spokesmen from the Enugu State University of Science and Technology (ESUT) and Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu University (COOU) have clarified that their institutions are actively participating in the scheme. COOU registered on the NELFUND portal on August 10 and was shortlisted on August 14, while ESUT completed the necessary verification three weeks ago, despite some technical delays.
NELFUND has explained that there was no deliberate exclusion of South-East students, noting that the delay in disbursement was due to pending verification processes from the institutions in the region. The agency emphasized that it is awaiting the completion of these verifications to enable students from the South-East to access the loans.
South-East lawmakers, including Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe and Rt. Hon. Igariwey Enwo, have urged the region’s tertiary institutions to expedite the verification process and encourage students to apply for the loan. They stressed the importance of ensuring that students from the South-East do not miss out on opportunities for educational support, which are crucial for self-development and growth.
The National Assembly members also reiterated their commitment to advocating for the South-East to ensure that the region is not inadvertently excluded from national development programs and opportunities.
