The Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND) has addressed concerns about alleged discrimination in the disbursement of student loans, stating that the process is based on eligibility and not influenced by geopolitical factors.

This clarification came after an X user, Santiago Leo, known as #Donaldsplendo, pointed out that none of the institutions from Nigeria’s South-East region were among the 19 listed beneficiaries of the loan disbursements.

NELFUND, the Federal Government’s body responsible for handling loan requests, grants, disbursements, and recoveries, had recently announced that a total of N2.9 billion in student loans had been disbursed to 27,667 students across 19 institutions nationwide.

In his tweet, #Donaldsplendo expressed disappointment, suggesting that students from institutions in the South-East, such as UNIZIK, FUTO, MOUAU, and the University of Nigeria (UNN), were overlooked, despite likely having applied for the loans.

Responding to these claims, NELFUND explained that the absence of South-Eastern institutions in the beneficiary list was not due to any form of neglect.

“Thank you for your concern. It is important to clarify that geopolitical zones are not a factor in the disbursement process,” the Fund tweeted.

They further explained that payments were made only to institutions that had responded to a verification list sent out earlier.

“NELFUND sent a verification list to every institution eligible for disbursement. Payments are being made to institutions that have responded to this verification,” they noted.

The Fund urged institutions in the South-East to complete the verification process so their students could also benefit from the loan scheme, stressing that the delay in disbursement to these schools was due to the lack of response from the institutions themselves.

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