By Clifford Ejenavi
The Nigeria Education Loan Fund (NELFUND) has reaffirmed its commitment to deepening transparency, strengthening accountability and improving the onboarding of higher institutions into its student loan ecosystem. This assurance was given at the 2025 National Summit of the Association of Bursars of Nigerian Universities (ABNU), held on Thursday 4th November, 2025 in Abuja.
Speaking at the summit, NELFUND’s Managing Director/Chief Executive, Mr. Akintunde Sawyerr, said the Fund remains focused on building a credible, efficient and fully digitised loan processing system that Nigerian students and institutions can trust. He noted that collaboration with bursars and university financial managers is crucial to the sustainability of the loan scheme.
During the session, the MD/CE engaged directly with the Bursars, responding to key questions, clarifying operational processes, and offering practical solutions aimed at strengthening collaboration between NELFUND and higher-education institutions.
He reiterated the Fund’s commitment to transparency, improved institutional onboarding, timely issue resolution, and shared responsibility to ensure that all operations deliver maximum value to Nigerian students. His remarks reinforced NELFUND’s dedication to partnering closely with universities to enhance the efficiency and credibility of the disbursement process.
He also explained that NELFUND is continually enhancing its institutional onboarding framework to ensure Universities, Polytechnics and Colleges of Education are seamlessly integrated into the platform. According to him, effective onboarding eliminates bottlenecks, reduces processing delays and ensures students receive timely access to financial support.
He stated further that, “Transparency and trust are the pillars of this scheme. Our goal is to ensure every institution is properly captured, every student is verified and every transaction is traceable. We are deploying improved digital tools and strengthening compliance procedures to ensure the system remains fraud-proof and accountable.”
The NELFUND MD/CE therefore commended ABNU for providing a platform where financial stewards of tertiary institutions can interface directly with policymakers to address challenges in education financing. He added that the Fund would continue to work closely with university bursars to perfect data validation, improve reporting standards and enhance the efficiency of disbursements.
ABNU National President, Dr. (Mrs) Hadiza Goje, lauded NELFUND for its openness and willingness to engage stakeholders. She said the 2025 summit aims to equip Bursars with updated knowledge on financial governance, digital accounting and the evolving student loan architecture in Nigeria.
“We are pleased with NELFUND’s transparent approach and its readiness to listen to institutions. Effective collaboration will ensure that the student loan scheme achieves its primary objective, making education accessible and financially sustainable,” Dr. Goje, said.
The summit also featured technical sessions on institutional data integration, financial compliance, risk management and innovations in education financing. Participants resolved to strengthen cooperation with NELFUND to ensure the full success of the national student loan initiative.
The MD/CE was accompanied by the NELFUND delegates including Director, Strategic Communications, Mrs. Oseyemi Oluwatuyi; Director, Monitoring & Evaluation, Mr. Aliyu Mohammed; Head, Client Support, Mr. Eto Eminimoh; PA to the MD/CE, Mr. Yomi Gbadamosi; Assistant Manager, Strategic Communications, Mr. Daniel Adeniran and Officer II, Strategic Communications, Mr. Waziri Idris.
With over 700,000 applicants already enrolled under the loan scheme, the renewed commitment to transparency and improved institutional onboarding is expected to accelerate disbursements and widen access to tertiary education across the country.
