IN the two years since President Bola Tinubu took office, Nigerian students have faced mounting challenges as the cost of education and upkeep rise amid continued economic hardship.
The surge in tuition fees across both federal and state tertiary institutions over the past two years has triggered widespread protests, pushing numerous students and their families into precarious financial situations.
The ICIR reports that since 2023, universities, polytechnics, and colleges of education have announced significant increases in school and hostel fees. Findings indicate that many students who paid between N20,000 and N40,000 are now paying N100,000 and more in their schools.
The economic landscape shifted dramatically following President Tinubu’s inauguration on May 29, with the removal of fuel subsidies and the floating of the naira. These policies led to a sharp increase in the cost of transportation, food, and other essential commodities, further straining the budgets of students and their families.
Despite the hardships occasioned by the government’s reforms, many universities have hiked school fees, with some students paying over N200,000, including the University of Jos (UNIJOS) and University of Abuja (UNIAbuja), where a student, Cyprian Igwe, was rusticated in May for urging students to meet and discuss the hike.
For many students and parents, affording school fees has become increasingly difficult, with students from low-income backgrounds being especially hard-hit. Some stated that they resorted to part-time jobs, while others seek crowdfunding from relatives.
The ICIR reported that to bridge this hardship, the federal government introduced the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFund), which thousands of students have reportedly benefitted from. However, some are still skeptical of the loan and noted that they would not want to burden themselves with paying back years later.
Mixed feelings trail students loan
While speaking with The ICIR, students of tertiary institutions expressed mixed reactions over the ongoing economic hardships and the impact of student loans in their education.
Some students, like Faruq Abdulganiyu Amo, a 500-level Agriculture student at Usmanu Danfodiyo University, consider the NELFUND as a lifeline.
“The recent hike in school fees has not really affected me, as I’m not the one paying myself. I didn’t make any adjustments in that regard. I applied for the student loan only for the school fee and not upkeep. It really helped.
According to him, many students have benefited from this loan initiative, which has positively impacted a lot of tertiary institutions. It has made a notable difference in my situation and that of many others
“Though I didn’t apply for upkeep, I see how it improves the quality of life for many students,” he said.
Also, Abdullateef Faruq, a 300-level English Education student, described how the fee increase has significantly impacted him, leading to late payments and forcing his family to seek financial assistance from relatives.
“The increase in school fees has impacted me significantly, although it hasn’t pushed me to the point of considering dropping out of school. The main adjustment I’ve had to make is that I often find myself paying late due to delays in gathering the necessary funds caused by the fee hike. Previously, I relied solely on my parents for support, but now we’ve started reaching out to some relatives for additional help,” he explained.
However, he acknowledged that the NELFund student loan he accessed last year played a pivotal role in covering his living expenses and school fees.
The Student’s Loan is an Act of the Parliament that makes it possible for Nigerian students to access zero interest loans to enable them pay for institutional charges and upkeep to any higher institution of their choice within Nigeria.
“This loan has been a valuable resource in many ways, especially for covering my living expenses and paying my school fees. “Although I faced some challenges, particularly with delays in getting my money refunded from the school, once the refund came through, it helped me manage some of my bills,” Faruq said.
Over half a million students registered
Despite the mixed feelings, NELFund’s dashboard data as of April 25, 2025, indicates a strong initial uptake of the programme. Out of 563,225 registered students, 500,341 have successfully applied for loans, representing an 88 per cent application rate.
The dashboard further shows that the total projected loan demand, encompassing funds for both institutional fees and student upkeep, has reached N165,903,458,198.
This projection includes N53,136,818,198 designated for direct payment to educational institutions and N12,766,880,000 allocated for upkeep allowances to support beneficiaries.
However, NELFund said it had only disbursed N54.2 billion. This includes N30,179,797,649.20 paid out for institutional fees and N24,036,160,000 provided as upkeep allowances to eligible students.
The disbursement process has also faced delays, with some students saying it took longer before they got their fund while some said they are still awaiting funds despite successful applications.
Recall a Guardian newspaper reported that at least 51 tertiary institutions were implicated in illegal deductions from institutional fees.
Concerns around repayment
The ICIR also gathered that some students are hesitant to apply for the loan due to uncertainties about their future financial stability and the repayment terms.
The NELFund repayment model involves a 10 per cent deduction from the beneficiary’s salary by their employer, or a 10 per cent monthly profit remittance for self-employed individuals, commencing two years after the completion of NYSC. Beneficiaries without employment after this period are required to notify NELFund via a sworn court affidavit every three months.
A student of Usmanu Danfodiyo University, Mahmud Abdurasheed, while speaking on the economic hardships noted that until 2023 during his early stage at the university, he lived on less than N10,000 monthly allowance and paid around N33,000 for school fee.
He stressed that with the school fee being significantly increased, he had to support the little he got from home with a menial job at school. According to him, this has helped him foot some of the bills but he agreed that it has a detrimental effect on his studies as he barely had enough time to read.
When asked why he has not applied for the student loan, he noted that paying it back might be hard for him immediately after NYSC.
“I did not apply because I am not interested. I also did not believe in the system and even though I apply, how sure am I sure I will be able to repay in due time. So it’s better I keep up with the work and try to live within my means,” he said.
According NELFund, the loan is due for repayment 2 years after the completion of NYSC and in case the beneficiary does not have job two years after NYSC, the beneficiary should notify NELFund by a sworn affidavit every 3 (three) months after two years post NYSC if still unable to gain employment.
Private school students hope for support
With its impact being significantly recorded among students of universities, students in private institutions feel marginalised as they are yet to be considered for accessing these loans, despite facing the same economic challenges as those in public institutions.
NELFund explained in October 2024 that the exclusion of private institutions was a strategic decision to maximise the reach of limited public funds by targeting the most vulnerable students in public schools with relatively lower tuition fees.
“We’re working with public funds, and the resources are limited. Most of the students who need this support are in public schools, where fees are affordable. It’s about prioritising and helping more people with the available funds,” the Managing Director of NELFund, Akintunde Sawyer, explained.
However, some private institution students objected to the claims, arguing that they are also facing the brunt of Tinubu’s economic policies.
Itoro Udo, a 300-level Mass Communication student at Bingham University, explained that while she can still afford her fees, the soaring cost of food is severely impacting her and her family.
“Things like food have really increased making it hard to eat two meals a day. The price of provisions has also gone up and in a school like mine where you aren’t allowed to cook it makes feeding difficult.
“I think that it would be very helpful to private school students and it would help students with upkeep and little things like dues and transport,” she said.
Nyiri Gyang, a 400-level Political Science student at Bingham University, echoed these sentiments, stating that the school fee hike has made it difficult to cover her dues.
She noted that the current inflation has also had a great deal of impact on her academics, adding that she is unable to ‘feed properly and meet up my deadlines for assignments because I can’t print sometimes.”
She stressed that she often resorted to borrowing from friends to complete printings for her assignments and paying back later when she has some money.
“The NELFund will be a good initiative to aid students like me improve academically,” she said.
Usman Mustapha is a solution journalist with International Centre for Investigative Reporting. You can easily reach him via: umustapha@icirnigeria.com. He tweets @UsmanMustapha_M