President Bola Tinubu has on Monday signed into law the Student Loan Bill in fulfilment of a promise he made during his campaign.
This was announced on by the spokesperson to the Federal Government, Mister Dele Alake, saying that the funds will be domiciled in the Ministry of Education and will only be accessed by indigent students of tertiary institutions.
The student loan bill sponsored by the Speaker of the 9th House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila, which provides for interest-free loans to indigent Nigerian students, passed the third reading at the House, two weeks ago. The piece of legislation passed second reading at the House of Representatives on May 25, 2023.
The law is to provide easy access to higher education for indigent Nigerians through interest-free loans from the Nigerian Education Loan Fund.
The Student Loan Bill recommended two years imprisonment or N500,000 or both for students who default in repayment or anyone found aiding defaulters.
Tinubu at one of his campaigns at the British Royal Institute in London, promised to give student loans as part of efforts to develop the education sector and also build the youth capacity.
“Youths are the greatest asset of tomorrow,” he said.
“The education system is to change. We would overhaul it and tinker with some areas with the philosophy that no one would be left behind. There will be student loans for all. We are going to reform the Almajiri system, We are equally going to build more schools, recruit more teachers and train them.
“Youths can even develop technological languages on their own and make a better 21st-century approach to governance in Nigeria.”
