The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) has uncovered major discrepancies in the administration of the Nigeria Education Loan Fund (NELFUND), revealing that only ₦44.2 billion of the ₦203.8 billion allocated for student loans has so far been disbursed.

This was contained in a statement signed by Demola Bakare,
Spokesperson for the Commission on Thursday.

According to the statement, the Commission confirmed it has launched a comprehensive investigation into the disbursement process, following media reports that 51 tertiary institutions were implicated in unauthorized deductions and exploitation of students.

The ICPC noted that some institutions were allegedly deducting between ₦3,500 and ₦30,000 from students’ institutional fees funded through the NELFUND scheme.

According to the Commission, preliminary findings showed that while the Federal Government allocated ₦100 billion for the programme, only ₦28.8 billion was initially disbursed, raising concerns about a missing ₦71.2 billion.

However, upon further investigation, the ICPC revealed that the total amount received by NELFUND as of March 19, 2023, was actually ₦203.8 billion.

“The breakdown showed that ₦10 billion was from the Federation Allocation Account Committee (FAAC), ₦50 billion came from the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), ₦71.9 billion was from the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund), and another ₦71.9 billion was also from TETFund,” the Commission said.

Out of this amount, only ₦44.2 billion has been disbursed to date, benefiting 293,178 students across 299 tertiary institutions.

“A clear case of discrepancies has been established in the administration of the student loan scheme,” the statement read.

The Commission confirmed that its Chairman’s Special Task Force had dispatched letters of investigation to several stakeholders, including the Director General of the Budget Office, the Accountant General of the Federation, and senior officials of the Central Bank of Nigeria. It also invited the Chief Executive Officer and Executive Director of NELFUND to provide documentation.

“The responses received were critically analyzed, and interviews were conducted with the concerned individuals,” the ICPC added.

It stated that the probe has now been expanded to cover both beneficiary institutions and individual student recipients to determine the full extent of the anomalies.

The statement further stated that further updates will be provided as the investigation progresses.