Vice-President Kashim Shettima has said poverty should no longer prevent Nigerians from accessing higher education under the administration of President Bola Tinubu, citing the Nigerian Education Loan Fund, NELFUND, as a major intervention helping students from less-privileged backgrounds remain in school.
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Shettima described NELFUND as a critical social equaliser and one of the Federal Government’s major instruments for expanding access to education and reducing the effect of poverty on young Nigerians.
The Vice-President spoke on Wednesday when he received the management team of the University of Abuja, led by the Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Hakeem Babatunde Fawehinmi.
According to Shettima, the student loan scheme has provided financial relief to families that might otherwise be unable to fund tertiary education by covering institutional fees and providing upkeep allowances to eligible students.
He said the intervention had significantly reduced the financial barriers that previously forced many students from poor homes to abandon or defer their education.
Shettima maintained that, with the support now available through NELFUND, “poverty is no longer an excuse not to go to school.”
He described the Fund as a major component of the Tinubu administration’s education policy, noting that its focus on students from less-privileged backgrounds was intended to ensure that access to tertiary education was not determined solely by the financial capacity of parents.
Beyond education, the Vice-President said Nigeria had, in his view, “crossed the rubicon” and was firmly on the path of sustainable economic development under the current administration.
He cited recent improvements in Nigeria’s sovereign credit ratings and outlooks by international rating agencies, which he attributed to stronger foreign exchange reserves, increased oil production, higher federal allocations following the removal of petrol subsidy and ongoing macroeconomic reforms.
Shettima also commended the leadership of the University of Abuja under Fawehinmi, saying the institution had overcome some of the challenges that affected it in the past and was gradually regaining stability.
He said the university was now standing on what he described as a stronger foundation and assured the management that the Federal Government would continue to provide support within available resources.
Earlier, Fawehinmi praised the Vice-President for his support for the university and the education sector, describing him as a mentor whose leadership had assisted the institution’s Governing Council and management.
“We have always known you to be a highly cerebral and dynamic leader. We appreciate the generous strides you are making in the country. We are not surprised at your intellectual agility,” the Vice-Chancellor said.
Fawehinmi also credited NELFUND with helping to bring relative stability to the country’s tertiary education system by enabling students to meet financial obligations and sustain their studies.
He said students who might previously have struggled to pay fees were now benefiting from the intervention and were better able to remain in school.
The Vice-Chancellor acknowledged that the University of Abuja had experienced leadership and administrative challenges in the recent past but said the current management had spent the last eight months working to stabilise the institution.
“Our recent history in terms of leadership has not been very palatable. There have been issues to do with our chequered history, but in the last eight months when we came on board, we tried our very best to stabilise the university,” he said.
Fawehinmi said the university’s management and Governing Council considered it necessary to formally appreciate the Federal Government and the Vice-President for the support extended to the institution.
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