The Permanent Chairman of the Southern Nigerian Traditional Rulers Council (SNTRC), Arole Oodua Olofin Adimula and the Natural Head of the Oduduwa race worldwide, the Ooni of Ife, Ooni Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi, CFR, Ojaja II, has received the Executive Director of Finance and Administration of the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND), Dr. Femi Akinfala, during a courtesy visit to the Ile Oodua Palace, Ile-Ife.
In a statement on Monday evening by the Director of Media and Public Affairs, Ooni’s Palace, Otunba Moses Olafare said Dr. Akinfala led officials of the agency on the visit.
Speaking during the visit, Akinfala described Osun State as one of the leading states benefiting from the initiative, commending Governor Ademola Adeleke for embracing the programme.
According to him, over 125,000 undergraduate students in Osun State are currently on the NELFUND portal, while about 57,000 students have successfully applied for the loan scheme.
He disclosed that the agency has disbursed over N11 billion to students in the state, noting that the intervention was designed by the administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to ease the financial burden on parents and ensure that no willing student is denied access to higher education due to lack of funds.
Akinfala said: “Governor Ademola Adeleke is the first Governor in Nigeria to embrace NELFUND. Today in Osun State, we have about 125,000 undergraduate students on our portal and 57,000 students have applied for the scheme.
“We have disbursed over N11 billion to students in Osun State. President Tinubu brought this initiative to empower parents financially and support students in achieving their academic dreams.
“The Constitution of Nigeria has clear roles for traditional rulers. We have come to seek the support of the Ooni because of his influence at the grassroots. We want Kabiyesi to help us take this awareness campaign to all the South-West states.”
Also speaking, the Lowa Adimula of Ile-Ife, Oba Joseph Adekola Adeyeye, urged parents and guardians to encourage their children and wards to take advantage of the NELFUND initiative instead of abandoning their education due to financial challenges.
He also appealed to media practitioners to intensify public enlightenment efforts on the programme in order to ensure wider participation among eligible students across the country.
In his remarks, the Ooni who is also the Permanent Co-chairman of the National Council of Traditional Rulers of Nigeria (NCTRN) called on students, particularly those in Osun State and the South-West region to embrace the education loan scheme, stressing that many eligible students were yet to take advantage of the opportunity.
The Ooni expressed concern that despite the high number of students in Osun state on the portal, a significant percentage had not applied for the NELFUND loan.
“Over 60,000 students in Osun State have not applied for NELFUND out of over 125,000 students in the state. It should not be so. Our children should not continue to burden their parents financially when such opportunity exists. They should apply for it,” the Ooni said.
The foremost traditional ruler further commended President Tinubu for introducing the initiative, describing NELFUND as a transformative programme capable of expanding access to education and reducing financial pressure on families.
“We have seen the impact of NELFUND and we have heard several success stories from beneficiaries. Thank you, President Tinubu, for making our children happy and for prioritising education through this laudable initiative,” the Ooni added.