NELFUND boss assures student loans, upkeep won’t be affected by ASUU strike

The Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND), Akintunde Sawyerr, has assured that the ongoing strike by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) will not disrupt the agency’s operations.

Sawyerr gave the assurance during an interview on Channels Television’s Morning Brief programme on Tuesday. He expressed confidence that the negotiations between the Federal Government and ASUU, led by the Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, would yield fair and positive results.

“The strike has only just begun, and I am confident that under the excellent leadership of Dr. Tunji Alausa, the discussions will continue to progress,” he said. Sawyerr added that NELFUND’s activities would continue unaffected, noting that the student loan scheme was part of a broader government effort to address challenges in the education sector.

“I don’t think this should be jeopardised at all,” he said. “While NELFUND focuses on funding for students, other aspects of the education system are also being handled by the ministry’s leadership. So we prefer to allow those negotiations to run their course before making further pronouncements.”

He emphasised that the agency’s priority is ensuring students do not suffer any negative consequences from the strike, adding that NELFUND is monitoring developments closely.

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President Bola Tinubu launched the NELFUND student loan scheme in 2024, following his assent to the Student Loans (Access to Higher Education) Act on April 3, 2024. The initiative was officially unveiled on July 17, 2024. As of August 11, 2025, 720,732 students had successfully applied for loans, while 731,140 had registered on the platform.