The Federal Government of Nigeria has put off the launch of the Nigerian Students Loan Scheme indefinitely.
Akintunde Sawyer, the Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Education Loan Fund had made this known during an interview with ARISE NEWS on Tuesday, March 13.
President Bola Tinubu had in June 2023, signed a bill to start a Students Loan Fund that would present interest-free loans to Nigerians for higher education.
A former Speaker of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila, had presented the bill and it was supposed to start between September and October 2023 but it had been delayed, with Tinubu saying that the program would begin in January 2024, after missing the October deadline.
In January, Minister of State for Education, Yusuf Sununu, announced during a meeting that preparations for the program had been concluded. The preparations included making the Student Loan Scheme website and planning how to start the programme.
Tinubu had informed the leaders of the National Association of Nigerian Students that the programme would start once they added more features, like vocational studies.
However, less than 48 hours before the launch, Sawyer announced that the loan scheme was shifted due to some corrections that were being made around the launch.
He had given reasons, saying:
“Unfortunately, I won’t be able to commit to a particular date. We are kind of waiting to make sure that all the 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.”
