The National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) has responded to recent comments by former Senator Dino Melaye on the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND), insisting that the ₦20,000 monthly payment to beneficiaries is only one component of the student financing scheme and should not be presented as the entirety of the support.
In a statement issued on September 28, 2026, NANS President, Dist. Comr. Akinteye Babatunde Afeez, GCNS, said the association was compelled to clarify the issue following Melaye’s public criticism of NELFUND and his description of the Fund as a “haven of corruption.” Melaye had questioned how ₦20,000 could cover students’ annual school fees and challenged the Federal Government’s description of the programme as a student-fee intervention.
NANS said the criticism appeared to stem from a conflation of upkeep assistance with institutional charges. The association explained that under the NELFUND framework, approved institutional charges and upkeep are treated as separate components of the loan.
NELFUND’s own official platform supports that distinction. Its terms state that the loan amount may consist of verified institutional fees and/or upkeep, while its public information page explains that, after verification, payments for institutional charges are made to the beneficiary’s institution and upkeep is paid into the student’s nominated bank account.
“The NELFUND initiative is far bigger than the ₦20,000 upkeep,” NANS said, arguing that reducing the programme to the monthly allowance leaves out the institutional component of the financing arrangement.
The association maintained that the distinction is important in any public assessment of the scheme because the ₦20,000 payment is intended as upkeep support, while institutional charges approved under the loan are handled separately.
NELFUND similarly describes the initiative as a Federal Government programme designed to break financial barriers to higher education, with its official platform stating that eligible students can access zero-interest loans for institutional charges and upkeep.
NANS also urged Melaye, and other commentators examining the student loan programme, to engage with its actual operating framework before drawing conclusions about what beneficiaries receive. The association said criticism of the scheme is legitimate, but should be based on the structure and documented provisions of the programme.
The student body further argued that public discussions should distinguish between questions about the adequacy of the upkeep allowance and claims about whether NELFUND pays institutional charges. These are separate issues, and the official NELFUND documentation makes that distinction explicit.
NANS said Nigerian students deserve accurate information about programmes directly affecting their education and called for issue-based discussion of NELFUND, including constructive scrutiny of its implementation and impact.
The association's statement was signed by Akinteye Babatunde Afeez, GCNS, President, National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS).
The exchange comes amid a renewed public debate over the student loan programme, with Melaye focusing on the adequacy of the ₦20,000 monthly upkeep payment, while NANS has sought to draw attention to the broader structure of NELFUND financing.
