Nigeria’s President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has signed into law a new bill, which provides interest-free loans to student.
It is the first of its kind in the country, that offers financial support for poorer students in higher education.
Nigerian students in tertiary institutions such as universities, colleges and polytechnics will now be able to easily get interest-free loans from the Nigerian Education Loan Fund to cover tuition fees.
According to President Tinubu, the move will ensure that no student is denied access to education because of non-availability of funds.
“The future of the country” is guaranteed. No Nigerian child [will] be denied access to tertiary education on account of lack of financial resources”, the president said.
In November, the Nigerian parliament passed the legislation seeking to establish a national education bank to offer loans to students.
But former President Muhammadu Buhari failed to assent to the bill before leaving office for unknown reasons. The bill was introduced in 2016 by Mr Tinubu’s chief of staff, Femi Gbajabiamila, when he was the speaker of the House of Representatives.
Beneficiaries of the loan are expected to start repayment as soon as they gain employment, following the completion of their studies and mandatory national service.
Presently, Nigerian banks  could only grant student loans to parents of the students with very stringent conditions.
Some students have dropped out of school due to non-availability of funds.
Source: Africafeeds.com
