By Jemimah Wellington, JKNewsMedia Correspondent
THE NIGERIAN Education Loan Fund (NELFUND) has announced that upkeep loan disbursements are now tied strictly to the academic session of each institution.
The fund stated this adjustment in a release signed by its Director of Corporate Communications, Oseyemi Oluwatuyi, on Thursday.
According to the statement, students will only be entitled to upkeep loans for their current academic session.
At the close of an institution’s academic year, upkeep payments for that session will automatically stop.
The release further noted that students who move into a new academic year will not continue to receive disbursements linked to the preceding session.
NELFUND advised students applying for loans to do so at the start of every academic session.
By applying at the beginning, applicants will qualify for both institutional charges and upkeep support for that session.
The fund explained that this approach is designed to streamline disbursements and ensure loans correspond directly with the active academic calendar of each institution.
The statement confirmed that the loan portal is being automated to capture the new directive.
Once the upgrade is complete, the platform will show only upkeep loans collected by students within the relevant academic year.
The fund stressed that this measure aims to guarantee transparency in loan disbursement and eliminate errors related to overlapping sessions.
Institutions were urged to upload their academic calendars and sessional information promptly to the portal.
NELFUND said timely updates would help ensure students benefit fully from the upkeep loans they are entitled to within an academic year.
Without such submissions, delays or interruptions in student benefits could arise.
The fund clarified that upkeep support is separate from institutional loans, which are disbursed directly to schools.
Beneficiaries of the upkeep arrangement currently receive N20,000 every month, totalling N240,000 annually.
With the directive now in place, upkeep payments will be available only during the academic session, and disbursements will automatically stop when students proceed on holidays.
NELFUND underscored that this adjustment is intended to align financial support with active study periods and to strengthen accountability across institutions.
Students and institutions were therefore advised to comply with the updated requirements to avoid disruption in the loan process.
