President Bola Ahmed Tinubu signed into law on June 12 a student loan bill that will enable Nigerian students to go to school and pay later.
According to the bill, there are certain conditions to be followed before one can access it. They are:
1. Student must have secured admission into any public Nigerian University, Polytechnic, college of education or any TVET school; Applicant income or family income must be less than N500,000 per annum; Applicant must provide at least two civil servants as guarantors: of not less than level 12 years in service; or a Lawyer with at least 10 years post-call experience; a Judicial officer; or a Justice of Peace.
2. Students who have defaulted on previous loans; found guilty of exam malpractice, felony, or drug offenses will not be considered.
3. Students with parents who have defaulted in respect of previous loans will not be considered.
The act also states that “Any beneficiary of the loan to which this Act refers shall commence repayment two years after completion of the National Youth Service Corps programme. Repayment shall be by direct deduction of 10 percent of the beneficiary’s salary at source by the employer.
Where the beneficiary is self-employed, he shall remit 10 percent of his total profit monthly to the student loan account to be prescribed by the bank.
For the purpose of sub-section 3 above, a self-employed person shall, within 60 days of assuming that status, submit all information such as the name of business, address and location, registration documents, registered, name of bankers, names of partners, name of directors and shareholders to the Commission.
Anyone in default of the provisions of sub-section 4 above or found to be aiding the default of any of the provisions of this Act is guilty of an offense and, if convicted, shall be liable to imprisonment for two years or a fine of N500,000 or both.”
The bill which was signed into law passed the second reading at the House of Reps on May 25, 2023.
According to the bill, there are certain conditions to be followed before one can access it. They are:
1. Student must have secured admission into any public Nigerian University, Polytechnic, college of education or any TVET school; Applicant income or family income must be less than N500,000 per annum; Applicant must provide at least two civil servants as guarantors: of not less than level 12 years in service; or a Lawyer with at least 10 years post-call experience; a Judicial officer; or a Justice of Peace.
2. Students who have defaulted on previous loans; found guilty of exam malpractice, felony, or drug offenses will not be considered.
3. Students with parents who have defaulted in respect of previous loans will not be considered.
The act also states that “Any beneficiary of the loan to which this Act refers shall commence repayment two years after completion of the National Youth Service Corps programme. Repayment shall be by direct deduction of 10 percent of the beneficiary’s salary at source by the employer.
Where the beneficiary is self-employed, he shall remit 10 percent of his total profit monthly to the student loan account to be prescribed by the bank.
For the purpose of sub-section 3 above, a self-employed person shall, within 60 days of assuming that status, submit all information such as the name of business, address and location, registration documents, registered, name of bankers, names of partners, name of directors and shareholders to the Commission.
Anyone in default of the provisions of sub-section 4 above or found to be aiding the default of any of the provisions of this Act is guilty of an offense and, if convicted, shall be liable to imprisonment for two years or a fine of N500,000 or both.”
The bill which was signed into law passed the second reading at the House of Reps on May 25, 2023.