Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of theNigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND), Mr. Akintunde Sanyerr, urged students in higher institutions across the country to apply for moreloans, assuring them thatthe process is transparent and without any interference.

Sawyerr, who spoke at a press briefing in Lagos, stressed that NELFUND is doing everything possible to ensure fairness in the granting and disbursement of loans to students who apply for them.

According to him,atotal of N23 billion has been paid to students in 228 universities, N18 billionfor tuitionfees and N5 billion for upkeep.The NELFUND boss disclosed that so far, 326,000 persons have applied for the loan, noting that the federal government is adequately prepared to fund thescheme.

.Sawyerrexplained that in order toensure that the loans were open to all, the registration was made available online, noting thatthe online application was to eliminate bias.

?You don?t have to know anybody to get the loan,? he said.

The NELFUND CEOrestatedthat the loan was interest-free, just as he emphasised that the government was interested in ensuring that no one was denied the opportunity to be educateddue to lack of funds.

Commenting on the information that the loan was being more accessed by students in the North than any other part of the country, Sawyerr explained that

NELFUNDhas increased its awareness creationso that everyone would see the opportunities that abound in it.

Sawywer said:?What we are doing is to make sure that everybody is aware of the opportunities and the fact around it (the loan) so that they can make informed decisions about what to do. If they decide that they don?t want to take the loan, there is nothing we can do.?

Hesaid findings had shown that the reluctance to take the loan by some Nigerians in some parts of the country was based on skepticism and cultural factor.

According to him, requesting for loan is not a popular culture in some parts of the country, hence the initial hesitation.

He said things were already changing, however, in recent times, given the amount of awareness being created.

The NELFUND boss said the parts of the country that were said not to be requesting the loan had started picking up and doing well.

He assured the peoplethat NELFUND would continue to create the awareness so that Nigerians would continue to benefit from the opportunities that abound.

He added: ?Our obligation is to go to every nook and cranny of Nigeria and make Nigerians aware of the presence and opportunities to encourage them to take the loan if they need it.

?People in the Northern part of the country had taken it (loan) faster than people in the South?.

?But we believe that given the activities put in place, the areas that had been skeptical are now growing faster (in application) than the other parts of the country.

?Our obligation is to create equal opportunities. Our objective is to ensure fairness, equity in transmission of information to all Nigerians on what it is all about,? he added. (THISDAY)