Students Loan Will End Incidents Of Drop Outs – Tinubu

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu had expressed that the student loan scheme would effectively tackle the issue of indigent students dropping out of school.

The President, represented by Professor Chinedu Nwajuba of the National Universities Commission (NUC), conveyed this message during the 31st/32nd convocation ceremony of the Federal University of Technology (FUT) Minna yesterday.

He said, “As you are all aware, I have assented to the Student Loan Act, implementation of which will commence in January 2024. We expect that with this, indigent students would stay in school rather than drop out as had been the case for many in the past”.

The President noted that over N2.18 trillion had been allocated to education in the 2024 budget, underscoring his commitment and determination to ensure substantial improvement in the sector.

“My administration is determined to ensure substantial improvement in the education sector. Pursuant to this, we are increasing funding for this critical sector, which is clearly demonstrated by our allocation of N2.18 trillion to the education sector in 2024 Appropriation Bill, more than 80 percent higher than the N1.29 allotted in 2023,” he said.

The Vice Chancellor of the university, Prof. Farouk Adamu Kuta, highlighted that with a staff strength of 2,385 and a student population of 26,051, virtually all the programs in the school had achieved full National Universities Commission (NUC) accreditation status.

He mentioned that the university was earnestly preparing to host international accrediting bodies for international accreditation, emphasizing that this initiative would propel the university towards excellence, peaceful co-existence, and developmental strides.