Students, parents and stakeholders have expressed concern over the lack of awareness of modalities for accessing the Federal Government’s student loan scheme.
The students and stakeholders, who spoke in Bauchi, Gombe and Jigawa decried delays in the implementation of the programme amid tuition fee hikes by some tertiary institutions.
The student loan scheme initiated by President Tinubu’s administration is designed to provide interest-free education loans for Nigerians willing to acquire tertiary education.
President Tinubu had in June signed the Access to Higher Education Act, 2023, otherwise known as the Students Loan Act, to pave way for the establishment of an Education Loan Fund to help Nigerians fund their higher education.
The benefiting students are expected to repay in installments two years after completing their National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) programme.
To fast-track smooth implementation, the federal government approved N5 billion for the scheme billed to commence in January 2024.
However, the students and parents are worried about the lack of awareness of eligible beneficiaries, modalities and guidelines for the disbursement of the loan.
Dr Lawan Yunusa, the Commissioner for Universal Basic Education in Jigawa, identified the lack of proper information as a major bane to smooth take off the programme.
“There are no proper information about the nitty-gritty regarding regulations governing the scheme for students and their guardians to actually decide whether to venture into it or not.
“The Federal Government should as a matter of urgency come out with clear information on how applicants could benefit and repayment after graduation,” he said.
Ms Amina Usman, a 300-level student, Federal University Dutse (FUD), said she only heard of the scheme but lacked in-depth knowledge of its modalities.
Another student, Muhammed Abdurrahman, said he only knew about the scheme on the media and didn’t how to access it.
Also, Mr Muhammad Auwal, the President, Student Union Government, FUD, said a non-governmental organisation had sensitised students on the scheme.
“The sensitisation exercise did not record a significant turnout, but we realised that the disadvantages are higher than the advantages of the scheme.
“So, even at our level as the student union leaders, we didn’t make any move to obtain information on it as the students may not accept it,” Auwal said.
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