Tinubu Directs Unclaimed Dividends, EFCC Recovered Funds to NELFUND

_Move aimed at sustaining student loan scheme amid rising demand_

ABUJA – President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has directed that all unclaimed dividends from the *Capital Market Trust Fund and the Dormant Account Trust Fund be channelled to NELFUND, the Nigerian Education Loan Fund, to make the scheme buoyant enough to meet its expanding obligations to Nigerian students.

The President also directed that recovered funds from the *Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC*, be diverted to NELFUND to sustain its growing funding obligations.

Briefing journalists after today’s Federal Executive Council, FEC, meeting, the Minister of Education, Tunji Alausa, disclosed the directives.

According to the Minister, the directive is part of government’s efforts to ensure NELFUND has adequate resources to cater to the increasing number of students applying for loans.

He explained that the funds from EFCC do not include seized properties or recovered looted funds, but rather liquid funds from the commission that will be transferred to NELFUND.

He added that the funds will include unencumbered monies that are not under legal contention.

The President’s directive also covers unclaimed dividends lying in the Capital Market Trust Fund and balances in the Dormant Account Trust Fund.

Government says consolidating these funds into NELFUND will provide a sustainable source of financing for the student loan scheme, which has seen rising applications since its rollout.

The administration has positioned NELFUND as a key intervention to improve access to tertiary education and reduce the financial burden on students and parents.