Adeleke urges NELFUND to avoid debt trap for students

By Deborah Oladejo, Osogbo

Osun State Governor Ademola Adeleke has cautioned the management of the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND) to ensure that the student loan scheme does not become a debt trap for beneficiaries.

During a meeting with NELFUND’s leadership on Tuesday, Governor Adeleke emphasized the importance of sustainable operations.

“Debt trap must never be experienced in Nigeria student loan operations. We must learn as a nation from the operation of the loans board,” Adeleke stated.

Drawing from his experiences in the United States, Adeleke highlighted the severe impact of student loan debt, which has become a significant crisis and a contentious political issue in the US.

“We must as a nation avoid a similar debt trap. Our new system must integrate mechanisms to prevent similar experiences like what is happening in the US,” he urged.

Governor Adeleke praised President Bola Tinubu for initiating the fund to address the challenges faced by Nigerian students.

“We commend the President for demonstrating political will by fast-tracking not only the establishment of the Fund but its effective take-off,” he said.

NELFUND’s Managing Director and CEO, Mr. Akintunde Sawyer, announced that Osun State was selected as the first to launch the program due to having the highest number of eligible students in their database.

Sawyer explained that the loan scheme targets students in government-owned tertiary institutions, with repayment starting two years after completing the National Youth Service Corps, provided the beneficiaries secure employment.