Vice President Kashim Shettima has described the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND), established by the administration of President Bola Tinubu, as a landmark initiative that has provided crucial financial relief to children from poor families and removed financial barriers to higher education.
Shettima said the administration had positioned NELFUND as a vital social equaliser and a key mechanism for poverty alleviation and the advancement of education in Nigeria.
The Vice President spoke on Wednesday in Abuja when he received the management team of the University of Abuja, led by its Vice Chancellor, Professor Hakeem Babatunde Fawehinmi.
This was contained in a statement issued by Stanley Nkwocha, Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Communications, Office of the Vice President.
Shettima said the scheme, which covers tuition fees and provides monthly upkeep allowances, targets students from less-privileged backgrounds who might otherwise be unable to access tertiary education.
According to him, the initiative has helped ensure that poverty is no longer an excuse for students to pursue higher education.
Recalling his days as a student at the University of Maiduguri, when food prices surged at the cafeteria, Shettima said, “NELFUND is a very beautiful initiative by the leadership of this country under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, created to give respite breathing space to the children of the poor.”
The Vice President also said Nigeria had “crossed the rubicon” and was firmly on the path of sustainable economic development under the Tinubu administration.
He cited recent upgrades in Nigeria’s sovereign credit ratings and outlooks by global rating agencies, attributing the development to stronger foreign exchange reserves, increased oil production, higher federal allocations following the removal of the oil subsidy and ongoing macroeconomic reforms under the Renewed Hope administration.
Shettima also commended the management of the University of Abuja under Fawehinmi, saying the Vice Chancellor had provided leadership that had helped overcome challenges that previously confronted the institution.
He said the university was now standing on a solid pedestal, with stability restored to the institution, and pledged that the Federal Government would provide the necessary support to the school.
Earlier, Fawehinmi commended Shettima for supporting and spearheading what he described as the growth and developmental strides of the Tinubu administration.
The Vice Chancellor described Shettima as a mentor whose leadership qualities had assisted the university’s Governing Board in managing the institution, while seeking continued partnership with the government to move the country forward.
“We have always known you to be a highly cerebral and dynamic leader. We appreciate the generous strides you are making in the country. We are not surprised at your intellectual agility,” he stated.
Fawehinmi said NELFUND, under President Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, had contributed to relative stability in the nation’s education sector, noting that students were able to attend school and sustain their stay in the institution.
He said the management and Governing Council of the University of Abuja deemed it necessary to thank the Vice President for the support he had consistently provided to the institution.
“Our recent history in terms of leadership has not been very palatable. There have been issues to do with our checkered history, but in the last eight months when we came on board, we tried our very best to stabilize the university,” he explained.
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