The Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Taiwo Oyedele, has suggested that some students may have received financial support from the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND) without informing their parents.

Oyedele made the remark while responding to an audience member who claimed that his three children in school had neither received NELFUND support nor knew anyone who had benefited from the scheme.

Speaking at a media briefing in Abuja on Wednesday, the minister advised the parent to ask his children whether they had applied for the scheme and to request evidence of their applications.

“It is possible they’ve collected the money and they are collecting from you,”  Oyedele said, urging parents to communicate with their children about the scheme.

He encouraged students who had not applied to do so, adding that NELFUND provides more than tuition support, including monthly stipends.

“We’ve seen videos of students randomly rejoicing because it’s not only the tuition that was being paid; they get monthly stipend interest-free in a high inflationary environment,” he said.

Oyedele said students could access up to N1.5 million through the scheme and urged parents who were unsure about the application process to assist their children.

He also disclosed that NELFUND uptake was higher in the northern part of the country than in the South, attributing the difference partly to what he described as greater scepticism about government initiatives in the South.

According to him, the government’s experience with the programme showed that students who applied successfully had been receiving alerts.

Oyedele further recounted his experience assisting indigent students through his personal foundation, saying some beneficiaries continued to approach him for financial assistance even after he directed them to apply for available government support.

“Many of them were still coming to me after I said go and apply. I sent the link to them within two weeks. They said we got alerts,” he said.