NELFUND Disburses N242.4 Billion To 1.38 Million College students As Mortgage Scheme Expands Nationwide

The Nigerian Schooling Mortgage Fund (NELFUND) has mentioned it has up to now disbursed the sum of N242.4 billion for the reason that initiative turned absolutely operational with the launch of its utility portal on 24 Might 2024.

To this impact, it has reached a significant milestone in its pupil help intervention programme, with a complete of 1,388,592 college students benefiting from the training mortgage scheme as of 15 April 2026.

The cumulative disbursement has now reached N242.4 billion for the reason that initiative turned absolutely operational with the launch of its utility portal on 24 Might 2024.

These figures, in accordance with the most recent Pupil Mortgage Disbursement Standing covers actions from the launch of the scheme on 24 Might 2024 to fifteen April 2026.

The unique report confirmed the fast scale-up of the scheme which is designed to enhance entry to tertiary training funding, scale back {financial} limitations, and strengthen human capital growth below the Federal Authorities’s Renewed Hope Agenda.

It indicated that over 1.7 million functions have been recorded since inception. Of this quantity, 1,388,592 college students have efficiently benefited from the mortgage scheme.

The cumulative sum disbursed below the scheme now stands at N242,400,915,093.25 (N242.4bn), comprising institutional charges and pupil maintenance allowances.

A breakdown of the determine exhibits that N157,455,283,093.25 (N157.4bn) was paid on to beneficiary establishments as tuition and institutional expenses, whereas N84,945,632,000.00 (N84.9bn) was disbursed as maintenance allowances to college students to help their dwelling bills in the course of the course of examine.

The twin disbursement construction, protecting each institutional charges and pupil maintenance, is designed to make sure that beneficiaries are usually not solely enrolled at school but additionally capable of maintain themselves all through their tutorial programmes.

The report additional exhibits that 288 tertiary establishments throughout Nigeria are presently benefiting from the scheme. These embody federal and state universities, polytechnics, and schools of training.

The report said: “Purposes obtained since inception stand at 1,771,797. A complete of 1,388,592 college students have up to now benefited from the mortgage scheme since its inception.

“The scheme presently has 288 beneficiary establishments, indicating its attain throughout tertiary establishments nationwide…

“This report presents a abstract of great milestones achieved for the reason that launch of the NELFUND Pupil Mortgage Portal. It particulars disbursements made to establishments for tuition charges and direct maintenance allowances to college students, delivering on one of many key guarantees of the Renewed Hope Agenda of empowering each Nigerian pupil,” it added.

The scholar mortgage scheme is likely one of the flagship social funding programmes below the Federal Authorities’s Renewed Hope Agenda, geared toward increasing entry to training and constructing a talented workforce for nationwide growth.

It’s anchored on the precept that no Nigerian pupil ought to be denied tertiary training attributable to {financial} constraints.

It was established following the signing of the Entry to Greater Schooling Act, 2023, which offered the authorized framework for the creation of a centralised pupil mortgage scheme in Nigeria.

In the meantime, NELFUND has described as faux a discover circulating that it has suspended its pupil mortgage disbursement programme.

In accordance with a press release issued by the company on its X account on Saturday, the Fund said that it had not introduced any pause in mortgage disbursements, urging the general public to ignore the message and rely solely on official communication channels.

The clarification comes amid rising consideration on the scheme, which the Federal Authorities says has benefited multiple million college students since its institution, enhancing entry to larger training throughout the nation.

The faux discover, which had been circulating on-line, claimed that “attributable to unexpected operational circumstances, NELFUND has taken the troublesome choice to quickly pause the scholar mortgage disbursement programme with fast impact.”

Nonetheless, NELFUND dismissed the declare, stating, “This doc is faux. Kindly disregard the circulating letter on suspension of pupil mortgage disbursements. NELFUND has not issued any such directive.”

The Fund suggested college students and stakeholders to hunt verified updates by means of its official platforms to keep away from misinformation.

Kuni Tyessi 

Times Nigeria