Recovered EFCC funds to support student loans

In the education sector, FEC approved the transfer of funds recovered by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND) to strengthen access to student loans.

However, funds connected to ongoing court cases will be excluded until the legal processes are concluded.

A public affairs analyst, Professor Simon Nnajioha, welcomed the decision but stressed that the effectiveness of the policy would depend largely on how the funds are administered.

He raised concerns over what he described as unequal awareness of the NELFUND programme, arguing that some students, particularly in southern Nigeria, may not have received adequate information about how to access the loans.

He also called for greater transparency regarding the amount actually recovered by the EFCC and ultimately transferred to NELFUND.