…says prioritize women, PWDs

By Gabriel Ewepu

AN international nonprofit organization, ActionAid Nigeria, AAN, Wednesday, hailed President Bola Tinubu over signing of Students’ Loan Bill into an Act.

The Country Director, AAN, Ene Obi, said Tinubu deserves to be commended for this singular act and described it as heartwarming, because it is a bold and patriotic step in alleviating the plight of Nigerians.

Obi said in the Act gives home to indigent Nigerians who are struggling to sponsor their children and wards to acquire higher education and fulfill their dreams and aspirations.

Meanwhile, she commended the National Assembly for passing the Bill into law, and said it has demonstrates its commitment to promoting equal opportunities and access to higher education for all individuals, regardless of their socio-economic background and reduce inequality.

According to her, the Students’ Loans Act is a great initiative in all written intentions, “but to ensure a fair and efficient administration of the loans, a decentralized approach that would not place all powers of coordination, supervision, and monitoring in the hands of the Nigerian Education Bank should be adopted. Students and Academic Unions and Civil Society Groups should be co-opted into this process.’’

She said: “There was a time in Nigeria when tertiary education was free or highly subsidized.

“In the 1970s and 1980s, during the oil boom era, the Nigerian government implemented policies that provided free or heavily subsidized education at the tertiary level.

“During this period, the government covered the tuition fees and provided financial support for students in public universities and colleges, giving scholarships at both national and international levels in its investment in human capital development. This allowed many Nigerian students to pursue higher education without having to pay tuition fees directly and a lot of our leaders today benefited from this.

“There were also students’ loans in the past that gave even more opportunities to more vulnerable students which were later stopped. Indeed, the action of the President is commendable and a welcome development.

“ActionAid Nigeria recognises that the Students’ Loan Act is a succour to the plight of the poor if well implemented but the sustainability of the process and the Act itself should be deeply examined.”

However, she (Obi) emphasized that for effective and efficiently managed and sustained Students’ Loan Act, it behooves the Federal Government to create an enabling environment for job opportunities, and economic growth which in turn will help students to repay their loans after graduation.

She further stated that the signing of the bill “should not be a ploy to increase tertiary tuition fees.

‘‘Governments should consider several measures to assist students in repaying their loans by implementing income-driven repayment plans that adjust monthly loan repayment based on the borrowers’ level of income, particularly for those who will start up as self-employed and at lower cadre jobs.

“The repayment methods should also include incentivising borrowers to work in certain public service sectors such as agriculture, public health, and education amongst others.”

Meanwhile,she called on government should prioritize women and Persons With Disabilities, PWDs, for the loan.

“It is imperative that women and persons with disability be given utmost priority in the approval of the loans as a way of addressing historical inequalities, overcoming financial barriers, promoting inclusivity, and empowering marginalised groups.

“Recall that KPMG in its International Global Economic Outlook report forecasted that Nigeria’s unemployment rate will rise to 41% In 2023.

“Meanwhile, the unemployment rate in Nigeria according to the National Bureau of Statistics stands at 33.3 per cent, under-employment is at 22.8 per cent, 42.5 per cent youth unemployment, and youth-underemployment is at 21 per cent.

“If the issue around under-employment or unemployment is tactically tackled, and students are not provided with financial literacy, the loan repayment may be a daunting issue.’’