NELFUND revolutionizes Student finance as challenges remain

The Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND) has been lauded for its transformative impact on higher education accessibility, effectively dismantling financial barriers for countless Nigerian youths.

Hon. Ifeoluwa Ehindero, Chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Student Loans, Scholarships, expressed his satisfaction with performance of NELFUND during an interactive session with the Association of Corporate Online Editors (ACOE) in Abuja.

Ehindero characterized NELFUND as a crucial governmental intervention, noting its rapid success in providing sustainable tuition support and upkeep stipends to eligible students since its inception in 2024.

He highlighted the agency’s impressive achievements, stating, “I am quite satisfied with the overall performance of NELFUND. One has to understand that the agency is barely a year plus.

“NELFUND started in 2024 and today they have over a million applications and they have disbursed over N116 Billion Naira in institutional fees, stipends to students as of October 2025. With about 983,000 beneficiaries. This is not a small feat…”

The lawmaker further emphasized the rigorous verification process undertaken by NELFUND, ensuring that the nearly one million applications are legitimate while commended the Managing Director for his tireless efforts in promoting the program’s success.
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s unwavering commitment to NELFUND’s success was also acknowledged by Hon. Ehindero.

The President has reportedly mandated consistent funding for the agency, ensuring that financial constraints do not impede its operations.

This commitment was further evidenced by the recent Tax Reform, which allocated 15% of the 4% Development Levy to NELFUND, a significant increase from its previous funding.
This allocation underscores the government’s belief in education as a cornerstone of national development and its confidence in NELFUND’s performance.

Despite these successes, Hon. Ehindero identified a significant challenge in the management and administration of funds by beneficiary institutions.

He explained that while NELFUND efficiently processes applications and disburses funds to institutions, the subsequent handling of these funds by the 265 beneficiary institutions presents an oversight hurdle.
“NELFUND’s main objective is to accept applications, process them and disburse in favour of eligible Nigerian students.

“So after disbursement, the way the institutions manage and administer funds is a different ballgame. Which is the challenge we are having right now,” he stated.

Since assuming chairmanship in February 2025, Hon. Ehindero’s committee has initiated oversight activities to ensure the agency’s competence, transparency, and progress.
Following satisfactory findings with NELFUND itself, the committee is now focusing on the beneficiary institutions, where delays in fund disbursement to students have been observed.

He noted that some institutions have genuine reasons for delays, while others do not, and his committee is actively engaging with them to ensure proper student verification.

To address these administrative bottlenecks and enhance transparency, Hon. Ehindero urged NELFUND to fully digitalize its disbursement process.
He envisioned a system where students would have personal dashboards linked to their school portals, allowing them to activate payments and register for courses directly.

This would prevent situations where NELFUND has disbursed funds, but students are unable to register due to institutional delays.

He proudly reported that through the committee’s oversight, eleven schools have already refunded money to NELFUND, with one particular institution returning N266 million Naira, and efforts are ongoing to recover funds from others. other defaulting institutions.