My struggles financing education in US inspired push for NELFUND, Tinubu says
President Bola Tinubu says his struggles to finance his education while studying in the United States as a young man inspired his commitment to expanding access to education in Nigeria.
Tinubu said he understood the challenges students face in paying tuition fees, securing accommodation and meeting other expenses because he had experienced similar difficulties while pursuing his university education.
The president stated this in a post on his X account on Wednesday, recalling how he worked as a taxi driver and took up different jobs to raise money for his education.
He said he had to postpone starting school for several months to save enough money before eventually moving to Chicago, where he combined different jobs with his university studies.
“Those experiences have stayed with me. I know what education made possible in my own life, and I believe every Nigerian child deserves that same opportunity, regardless of where they are born or what their parents can afford,” he said.
Tinubu said his administration’s education reforms were driven by the belief that every Nigerian child should have an opportunity to fulfil their potential, irrespective of their family’s financial circumstances.
He listed some of the initiatives introduced by his government, including the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND), which he said had provided more than ₦372 billion in loans for students’ institutional fees and upkeep.
The president also said the technical and vocational education programme had attracted more than 2.8 million applications, while 38 technical colleges had been rehabilitated.
According to him, students in federal and selected state technical colleges now enjoy free tuition, boarding, textbooks and uniforms.
On university education, Tinubu said his administration had reached a new agreement with the Academic Staff Union of Universities, providing for a 40 per cent increase in academic staff remuneration and measures to promote stability in the university system.
“A four-year course must take four years. Our young people deserve to complete their education on time and get on with their lives,” he said.
The president further disclosed that his government was investing ₦110 billion in the rehabilitation of 24 medical schools, while annual nursing enrolment had increased from 28,000 to 115,000.
